Dragon Age: All of the Wardens
by Drakarn
Summary: What if Duncan had recruited more than one Grey Warden? See what it would be like when he goes through all the races looking for his recruits, and see how they interact with each other.
1. Darion Cousland

A/N: This story is based around all of the races in Dragon Age: Origins so don't be confused when I start with someone else next time. Anyways, enjoy the story and send me some reviews so I can know how to improve on my writing.

Darion Cousland, a young and ambitious young man, was sitting outside of the training area. He had his sword and shield lying next to him as he admired the beauty of the day. He had finished his practice with the other trainees for some time now and he was truly tired, while he may have been a promising young warrior he still had a long way to go before he was ready to march onto the battlefield, banner raised up high. He looked around his surroundings, he was all too familiar with this setting, training dummies lay hacked to pieces on the ground while broken wooden swords and shields were lined up against the walls. He rubbed a large welt on top of his shaved head, he had been careless when he sparred Ser Gilmore, a mistake he wouldn't make again. Darion stood up, stretching his back as sweat dripped off of his training shirt. It was a good day to be alive by any standard. He wiped his brow, his hand brushing against the tattoo he had over his left eye. He paused for a moment, remembering what it stood for, strength in even the darkest of times. Smiling he picked up his sword and shield and headed to the changing room to retrieve his formal armor, he had heard from his father that Arl Rendon Howe had been at the estate for some time now and he wanted to look his best. After all, Darion had an exceeding amount of respect for the man, having served in the Orlesian war. But this was different, this was to face Darkspawn, creatures much worse then simple Orlesians.

Once he had changed Darion went to the main hall to meet his father and greet Arl Howe. When he reached the door he heard two voices, one he recognized as his father's the other was unfamiliar. He walked into the main hall, looking around, the fire was blazing as usual and the family crest was hanging just over it. By the edge of the fire he saw his father and Arl Howe, both of whom seemed engaged in a conversation. Darion heard his father say, "At least the smell will be the same." Just before he noticed his son's presence. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you pup," he said. "Howe, you remember my son?"  
>Darion looked at Howe who nodded and smiled, saying, "I see he's grown into a fine young man, good to see you again lad."<p>

Darion extended his hand, shaking Howe's, "And you, Arl Howe."

"My daughter Delilah asked after you, perhaps I should bring her next time." Howe stated, letting his hand drop to his side.

"I'd like that," the young man replied, smiling.

"Good, she's talked about you ever since she saw you at a fair in Denerim." Howe started, "I think you have an admirer young man."

"At any rate pup," Darion's father, Bryce Cousland, said before their conversation could go any further, "I summoned you for a reason. While your brother and I are both away, I'm leaving you in charge of the castle."

This came as a surprise to Darion, nothing like this had happened to him before and he wasn't sure he was ready for a task like this. But his father seemed to believe otherwise. "Wait," Darion started, "why can't I go into battle with you and Fergus?" He was truly sincere in this question; he wanted to go into battle with his family more than anyone else in the house.

"I'm certain you'd more than prove yourself," his father replied, "but I am not willing to deal with your mother if you join the war. She'd kill me if I let you go. She's already twisted into knots about Fergus and me going."

Darion felt anxiety building up, "That's not fair! I wish to fight."

His father smiled understandingly, "You'll have your chance soon enough. This is no needless task. I ask you to take a great responsibility. Only a token force is remaining here, and you must keep peace within the region. You know what they say about mice when the cat is away yes?" His father stopped for a moment, then he snapped his fingers, "There's also someone you must meet." He turned to one of the guards on duty, "Please, show Duncan in." The guard nodded and quickly hurried off.

A few moments passed and an elderly looking man with two blades on his back and white armor walked into the room. He had an air of command about him that made Darion respect him before even meeting this stranger. Then he spoke his voice was both wise and sharp, "It is an honor to be a guest within your hall Teryn Cousland."

Arl Howe looked truly surprised at this man's arrival, "Your lordship, you didn't mention a Grey Warden would be present."

Darion's father raised an eyebrow, "Duncan arrived recently, unannounced. Is there a problem?"

"Of course not, but a guess of his stature demands certain protocol." He paused for a moment, Darion thought he detected a hint of malice in Howe's voice when he said, "I am…at a disadvantage."

Bryce nodded, "We rarely have the pleasure of seeing one in person, that is true." He looked at Darion, who was busy admiring the Grey Warden, "Pup, Brother Aldous taught you who the Grey Wardens were, I hope?"

Darion quickly shook his head, regaining his attention, "Yes, they defeated the Darkspawn long ago."

"Not permanently I fear," Duncan stated rather morbidly.

"Without their warning of the Darkspawn rising now, half the nation could have been overrun before we had the chance to react." Bryce said, looking at Darion, "Duncan is looking for recruits before joining us and his fellow wardens in the south. I believe he's got his eye on Ser Gilmore."

Darion nodded, Ser Gilmore was a very logical choice. He was strong and in his prime, and truly loyal to serving those who commanded him. Then Duncan said something that caught everyone off guard, "If I may be so bold, I would suggest your sun is also an excellent candidate."

This surprised Darion, he never really considered himself so strong that he could become a Grey Warden. But if he were called to be one he wouldn't hesitate to follow Duncan to do so. His father stepped between the two almost defensively when Darion saw him regain his mental bearing, "Honor though that might be, this is one of my sons we're talking about."

"Perhaps that would put me into battle," Darion said suddenly.

His father looked at him sternly, "This discussion is closed." Darion, not wanting to anger his father, remained silent.

"You did just finish saying that the Grey Wardens are heroes, old friend." Howe stated.

"I've not so many children that I'll gladly send them off to battle." Bryce said defensively. "Unless you intend to invoke the Right of Conscription?"

"Have no fear," Duncan replied calmly. "While we need as many good recruits as we can find, I've no intention of forcing the issue.

Darion's father nodded, "Pup, can you ensure Duncan's requests are seen to while I'm gone?" He said, looking back at Darion with somewhat softer eyes.

"I don't have to be here to do that do I?" Darion asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes you do," his father replied with a sigh. "Duncan is an honored guest and it's your duty him welcome here, is that clear? In the meantime, find Fergus and tell him to lead the troops to Ostagar ahead of me."  
>"Where is Fergus?"<p>

"Upstairs in his chambers, no doubt," his father replied, "spending some last moments with his wife and my grandson." His father smiled at him, placing his hand on Darion's shoulder, "Be a good lad and do as I've asked. We'll talk soon."

Darion smiled back at his father, "Very well, I'll see to it then." He proceeded out of the door and into the main hallway, looking around the castle as he did so. He thought he heard some laughter coming from the treasury, curious he proceeded towards it. He entered, finding the two guards who were supposed to be on duty playing cards.

One of the guards looked up, standing at attention, shortly followed by the second, "Oh, uh, my lord we were just…" his voice drifted off as Darion remained silent.

"Playing cards?" Darion asked after a few moments.

The guard sighed, "Yes…" he said slowly.

Darion nodded at the two, "Carry on then, the treasury is safe enough. And don't worry, I won't report this to my father."

The two guards looked surprised, "Thank you my lord."

Darion shook his head, "Don't thank me. Just make sure no one steals the family sword while you play, or it'll be your head." The two guards looked at each other as Darion continued on his way.

He was stopped by a familiar voice, "There you are." Ser Gilmore said as he stepped from a hallway, "Your mother had told me the Teryn summoned you, so I didn't want to interrupt."

Darion quickly turned to face Ser Gilmore, "Why are you looking for me?"  
>Ser Gilmore pointed to the kitchen, "I fear your hound has the kitchens in uproar once again." He said with a chuckle, "Nan is threatening to leave."<p>

As if on queue there was some barking followed by screams of anger. Darion raised his hand, "Nan's just blowing off steam, she's always been like that."

Ser Gilmore chuckled again, "Your mother disagrees. She insists you collect the dog, and quickly. You know these mabari hounds. They listen only to their master, anyone else risks having an arm bitten off."

Darion smiled at this. His mabari, Merik, was always a rambunctious one by any standard. "He knows better than to hurt anyone." He stated plainly after he managed to put on a straight face.

Ser Gilmore shook his head, "I'm not willing to test that. You're quite lucky to have your own mabari war hound, you know. Smart enough not to talk, my father used to say. Of course that means he's easily bored. Nan swears he confounds her just to amuse himself. At any rate your mother would have me accompany you until the matter was settled. Shall we?"

Darion nodded, "To the kitchen then."

Ser Gilmore pointed his thumb behind his body, "Just follow the yelling. When Nan's unhappy, she makes sure everyone knows it."

The two proceeded towards the kitchen, and truth be told the yelling did get worse. When they entered the kitchen Darion saw Nan reprimanding a couple of elves, "Get that bloody mutt out of the larder!" she shouted as the elves cringed in fear.

"But mistress," the female one said, "it won't let us near."

"If I can't get into the larder I'll skin both you useless elves, I swear it!" Nan continued shouting.

The two men looked at each other nervously, "Erm…Calm down good woman." Ser Gilmore finally said hesitantly, "We're here to help."

Nan turned to face Darion, "You, your bloody mongrel keeps getting into the larder, that beast should be put down!"  
>Darion was a little upset at the comment, to say the least. He stated firmly, "He's not a mongrel, he's a pureblood mabari."<p>

Nan shook her head, "A blight wolf is what he is. How am I supposed to work like this?"

The female elf managed to straighten herself up a bit and said, "Oh dear, mistress, calm down. Please…"

Nan threw her hands up in frustration, "That's it, I'll quit. Inform the teryna. I'll go cook in some nice estate in the Bannorn."

Ser Gilmore sighed in frustration, "Nan, please! We'll get Merik, calm down."

"Just get him gone! I've enough to worry about with a castle full of hungry soldiers!" Nan turned to face the two elves, "You two! Stop standing there like idiots! Get out of the way!"

Darion quickly opened the larder door to find his dog sniffing around, looking for something. After a few moments Merik started barking. "Ugh," Ser Gilmore started, "look at that mess. How did he even get in here?"

When Merik heard the two he quickly began wagging his tail happily at his master. After a few moments he began barking, "Are you trying to show me something boy?" Darion asked Merik. The dog began spinning around in circles excitedly.

"He does seem like he's trying to tell you something," Ser Gilmore said, watching the dog. "Wait," he said after a thump was heard, "did you hear that?"

All of a sudden rats came from everywhere, large ones as well. From every small crevice a large and oily face with red eyes came charging at the three, Ser Gilmore and Merik began killing them off while Darion lobbed off some of their heads. It wasn't a very threatening fight, or one the bards would sing of, but it got the adrenaline pumping. Once they were all dead Ser Gilmore sheathed his sword, "Giant rats?" he said, confused. "It's like the start of every bad adventure my grandfather used to tell." The two looked at Merik happily, "Your dog must have chased them in through their holes. Looks like he wasn't raiding the larder after all." At that comment Merik barked happily.

"It certainly looks that way," Darion commented. The two agreed not to tell Nan about the rats as the exited the larder. She gave the two a stone cold glare that sent a chill down Darion's spine. They quickly left the kitchen.

Once out of that situation Ser Gilmore looked at Darion, "Well, that was an adventure. Unfortunately I need to prepare for the arrival of more of the Arl's men." He turned and left after saying thing, Darion waving goodbye.

Before he left he could have sworn he heard one of the elves say, "Oh mistress, there are rats in the larder! Big ones!" Darion smiled, knowing what his dog did to help in that little fiasco.

While he continued on to find his brother he saw his mother talking with some other people. His mother stopped him, "Ah, here is my youngest son. I take it by the presence of that troublesome hound of yours that the situation in the kitchen is handled?"

Darion chuckled, saying jokingly, "Nan's head exploded and Merik ate the kitchen staff."

"Well at least one of us will have had a decent dinner." His mother replied in the same jovial fashion. In response Merik barked happily, "Perhaps your hound left something I can feed my guest. Darling you remember Lady Landra? Bann Loren's wife?"

In response the old woman next to his mother smiled and said, "I believe we last met at your mother's spring salon."

Darion nodded, smiling politely, "Of course. It is good to see you again my lady."

"You're too kind dead boy, didn't I spend half the salon shamelessly flirting with you?"

"Right in front of your family to," said a young man jokingly.

"You remember my son Dairren?" Lady Landra asked, ignoring the comment. "He's riding with your father tomorrow."

Dairren nodded at him, "It's good to see you again my lord."

Darion nodded, "I'd rather be riding with him myself."

"You'll be missed," Dairren replied.

Lady Landra nodded her head towards a young elf woman standing next to her, "And this is my lady-in-waiting, Iona. Do say something dear."

Iona was very quiet and shy, averting her gaze in an embarrassed fashion, "It is a great honor, my lord. I have heard many wonderful things about you."

Lady Landra smiled, talking to Darion's mother, "Don't look now, Eleanor, but I believe the girl has a crush on your lad."

At that comment Iona's face started turning a deep shade of red, "Lady Landra!" She exclaimed, surprised.

Darion's mother nudged Lady Landra, "Hush, Landra." She said jokingly, "You'll turn the poor thing scarlet."

"Perhaps we should speak alone sometime, Iona." Darion commented, he watched her face turn a deeper shade of red.

"As it pleases you…my lord." She eventually replied.

"I think perhaps I shall rest now, my dear." Lady Landra said before the conversation could go any further. "Dairren, I will see you and Iona at supper."

Dairren nodded, "Perhaps we'll retire to the study for now." He turned and left, Iona following behind while Drakarn smiled at the girl.

"Good evening your lordship," Lady Landra said, Darion nodded as she left.

"You should really go see Fergus," his mother said after a moment.

Darion nodded, "I intend to do so, I'll see you at dinner mother." He turned and quickly proceeded to his brother's room. When he arrived he heard voices, one being his nephew, Oren.

He opened the door as the young boy said, "Is there really going to be a war papa? Will you bring me back a s-word?" Darion smiled at the last word, the boy was still young and didn't quite understand how to say the word properly. He felt that the boy still held his innocence, something he had lost contact with a long time ago.

"That's sword, Oren," his brother said, correcting the boy. "And I'll get you the mightiest one I can find, I promise. I'll be back before you know it." Darion smiled at his older brother, he was always kind and considerate, and a good fighter as well.

"I wish victory was indeed so certain," his wife replied. "My heart is…disquiet." Darion sighed. She shared the same fears as him. He was certain that everyone in his family feared for what would happen to Fergus when he left.

"Don't frighten the boy love," Fergus replied confidently. "I speak the truth!" That was Fergus. Nothing ever seemed to get him down. He looked up at Darion, finally noticing him, "And here's my little brother come to see me off. Now dry your eyes love, and wish me well."

"It's good to see you brother," Darion said, standing before Fergus.

"And you as well, Darion. I trust Merik didn't cause too much of a stir?"

Darion shook his head, "No, he just caught some rats in the larder. Nan's still upset though."

Fergus chuckled, "Well, that's how it's always been."

"Should I leave you two alone?" Darion asked, not wanting to interrupt the moment he was having with his wife.

Fergus chuckled, "When there's a woman in your life you'll understand."  
>Darion shook his head, saying jokingly, "No fewer than three please."<p>

"Bold words little brother. I mean a real woman, not some turn in the straw."

Darion saw Fergus' wife smack him gently, "Fergus, language!"

"You like to play in the stable too, uncle?" Darion heard Oren ask innocently, that made him laugh. "I like to hide in the hay," the boy finished.

Oren's mother quickly went to reprimanding the child, "Don't you listen to this. If I catch you with your clothes full of straw again, I'll send you to mother Mallo!"

"But mama," Oren said in complaint, "she talks forever!" This made Darion burst out laughing, although he couldn't deny the truth in the boy's words.

After his bout was over he turned to Fergus, "I wish I could join you." He said to his older brother.

"I wish you could come," Fergus replied. "It'll be tiring killing all those Darkspawn myself."

"Surely your father would not place both his heirs in danger," his wife pointed out.

"Mother and father have been fighting about it for days," Fergus added. "It's too bad, I could have used you at my side."

Darion smiled, putting his arm around Fergus' shoulder, "You'll be missed brother."

Fergus smiled as well, "If it's any consolation," he started, "I'm sure I'll freeze in the southern rain and be completely jealous of you up here, warm and safe."

"I am positively thrilled you will be so miserable husband," Fergus' wife said jokingly.

Darion sighed, "I bring a message, father wants you to leave without him."

"Then the arl's men are delayed." Fergus sighed. "You'd think his men were all walking backwards. Well I'd better get underway. So many Darkspawn to behead, so little time." He turned to face his wife, "Off I go then. I'll see you soon my love."

From behind Darion heard his father come in, saying, "I would hope, dear boy, that you planned to wait for us before taking your leave."

Their mother went over to Fergus, hugging him tightly, "Be well my son. I will pray for your safety every day you are gone." Darion almost felt a tear come to his eye. He knew their mother was doing everything she could to keep herself from crying. Darion understood. After all, what mother would want to see her child leave for war?

"Fergus will be fine," Darion said, reassuring himself as much as everyone else in the room.

"I keep telling you," Fergus started, "no Darkspawn will ever best me."

"Maker sustain and preserve us all," Fergus' wife began praying. "Watch over our sons, husbands, and fathers and bring them safely back to us."

"And bring us some ale and wenches while you're at it!" Fergus added jovially. "Er…for the men of course."

"Fergus!" his wife said, surprised. "You would say this in front of your mother?"

"What's a wench?" Oren asked. "Is that what you pull on to get the bucket out of the well?" Darion almost started laughing again. The boy's questions were endless it seemed.

"A wench is a woman that pours the ale in a tavern, Oren." Darion's father explained. "Or a woman who drinks a lot of ale."

"Bryce!" Darion's mother said. "Maker's breath, I swear it's like living with a pack of small boys."

Fergus began laughing heartily, "I'll miss you, mother dear." He turned to face Darion, "You'll take care of her, brother. Won't you?"

Darion chuckled with Fergus, "Mother can handle herself, always has."

"It's true." Fergus said. "They should be sending her, not me. She would scold those Darkspawn back into the Deep Roads."

"Well I'm glad you find this so funny," Their mother said in a huff.

Their father began chuckling, "Enough, enough. Pup, you'll want to get an early night, you've much to do tomorrow."

Darion nodded, "I intend to do that." He turned to his brother, "I'll be seeing you soon enough I hope?"

Fergus nodded, "Of course, no Darkspawn will keep the Couslands apart. Trust me."

Darion yawned, "Well then goodnight brother, mother, father. And you as well Oren, mind your mother, understand?"

Oren nodded, hugging Darion, "Of course uncle. Good night."

Darion walked off to his chambers and undressed, laying his sword and shield by the side of his bed. He fell down on the soft mattress and let the sweet kiss of sleep brush against his lips as he slid into peaceful dreams, his dog lying next to him.

Darion awoke to his dog barking angrily at his bedroom door, "What is it boy?" He said, still drowsy. "Is something wrong?"

After he said this there was a desperate knocking at his door. Darion sat up, looking at the door uneasily, the door was thrust open and one of the servants burst in. "My lord! Help me! The castle is under attack!" as soon as the young servant finished his sentence an arrow went straight through his chest, meaning that the shooter was very close by. When the servant's body fell to the floor he saw one of Howe's men loading another arrow while a second man came in, bearing a sword and going straight for Darion. The man quickly swung his sword downwards but Darion had picked up his shield, blocking the attack. After that Merik quickly tore at the assailant's legs, knocking him down where the dog began making quick work of him.

Darion saw the other man aiming his arrow at the mabari and he quickly picked up his sword. Once the arrow was launched from the bow Darion had managed to get in its path, blocking it with his shield and sprinting for Howe's soldier. The soldier dropped his bow and drew a small dagger, stabbing at Darion. Darion blocked this, slicing down at the man's throat. His sword struck true as Howe's soldier fell limp to the ground and blood began pooling. Darion managed to get his breathing to a normal level and he noticed that he could hear fighting going on throughout the castle.

He quickly went back into his room, putting on his armor as fast as he could. Once he was done with this the door to his parent's room burst open. Darion raised his sword, ready to fight. He lowered them when he saw his mother wearing some armor and holding a bow in her hands. "Darling!" She started, sounding relieved. "I heard fighting outside and I feared the worst."

Darion shook his head, "I'm alright mother, but what of you? Are you hurt?"  
>"I'm fine, when I heard a scream and saw men in the hall so I barred the door." She paused for a moment, "Did you see their shields? Those are Howe's men! Why would they attack us?"<p>

Darion growled, "I don't know, but I do know what I'm going to do when I get my hands on that bastard."

"Have you seen your father?" She asked. "He never came to bed."  
>It was then that Darion got worried, "No," he replied, "I haven't."<p>

"We must find him!" She exclaimed.

Darion nodded, "Of course, let's not waste time. But how do we find father?"

His mother thought for a few seconds, "We should find him downstairs, but I don't know where he could be right now. Let's go before more show up."

It was then something occurred to Darion, a sickening thought. "What about Oren and Fergus' wife?"

His mother's eyes widened in surprise, "You don't think they went into Fergus' room first do you? Come, we must go quickly!"

Darion was the first into his brother's room, and he was quickly sickened at the sight. On the ground lay Oren and Oriana, both bleeding out at a rapid rate. Darion closed his eyes, looking away as his mother walked in and gasped. She quickly went to the boy's side, cradling him in her arms as she wept openly, all that Darion could make out from the sobs was, "My little Oren, no!"

Darion clenched his fist in disgust, how could Howe have done this? Why? He wasn't even taking hostages, meaning he meant to slaughter them all. A few moments passed and Darion finally broke the silence, slicing his sword into a nearby bookcase and making it fall over, "Howe will pay!" he shouted angrily. He calmed himself, breathing heavily and looking over the carcass of the boy. Tears began flowing freely from his eyes while he looked at the child's hand lay limp and lifeless on the cold stone floor. Darion closed his eyes, not wanting to see this anymore. He quickly picked his mother up from the floor, "Let's go." He said coldly, "We're leaving."

As she followed Darion he couldn't help but wonder what was going through Howe's mind. When the got downstairs there were a few of Howe's men fighting with the guards. Darion and Merik quickly charged them, his mother launching off arrow after arrow. The made quick work of Howe's soldiers, proceeding to the main chamber where they assumed Darion's father would be. His mother stopped them at the treasury. "Wait," she started, "we can't leave the family sword. Not in the hands of Howe." She quickly went into the room, followed by Darion. He watched as she opened the locked door, meaning the treasury wasn't touched yet. As Darion went inside he saw the sword, a brilliant blade with the family crest built into the pommel of the hilt, and a shield with House Cousland's crest on it. He picked both up. They were made masterfully and appeared very useful. He left the room, looking at his mother and nodding.

"I'll use this blade to take Howe's head." He growled, proceeding to the main hall. Once they reached it they found Ser Gilmore and several other guards fighting against a particularly large force of Howe's men. Not wanting to lose the main hall to the likes of Howe Darion charged into the fray, cutting down men left and right. He felt a large burst of heat land behind him and Darion flew forward. He quickly regained his balance, seeing a mage getting ready to cast another spell. Darion didn't give him that chance. He charged the mage and just before the spell was cast Darion sent his sword through the mage's chest. A few moments passed, then his adversary fell to the ground.

Ser Gilmore walked up behind him, panting heavily. "My lord," he started, "thank the Maker you're alright. Tell me, where is your father."

Darion's heart sank, "I was hoping he would be here."

Ser Gilmore lowered his gaze, "Unfortunately no, my lord. If he isn't here then he must be at the servant's entrance in the larder."

Darion sighed, "Alright, we'll go there. Will you follow us Ser Gilmore?"

The main door started shaking with pressure as Howe's men tried to get through the entrance, "I'm sorry, my lord, but I cannot. I'll stay here with the rest of the guard and try to hold them off." After saying this he and the rest of the guards in the room went to the front door, holding it back with all their might.

"Be safe, Ser Gilmore." Darion's mother called as they went through the door on the other side of the room. They proceeded through the destroyed hallways without much hassle. Apparently the majority of Howe's force was stopped at the main hall. Darion thanked the Maker for their strength in that situation.

They made it to the larder. Opening the door he saw his father lying on the ground and holding his side, a pool of blood gathering around his body. "Ah," he started, smiling weakly. "I was wondering when you'd show up."

Darion couldn't find anything to say. This couldn't be happening, could it? How could his father be lying on the floor and dying right before him? It had to be a dream. He heard his mother run to the man lying on the ground, "Bryce!" She shouted, sobbing over him.

"He suffered serious injury. I tried my best to get him here safely, but there were too many." A voice said from behind the group. Darion heard Merik growling as he turned to face the person in the room. He saw Duncan standing in the entrance, his swords covered in blood.

"Duncan," Darion's mother said, staring at him. "Do you know why Howe has done this?"

Duncan shook his head, "I'm sorry to say, I don't know my lady."

"D-Duncan…" His father started, groaning in pain. "Take my son, please. Get him out of here."

Duncan sighed, "I will, my lord. But I cannot without saying this. I came here searching for another recruit. I cannot leave without one."

"Very well…" His father said, his voice getting weaker all the time. "You may take my son. Just please make sure Howe is brought to justice."

"I will do everything in my power, my lord." He said, standing up. He looked at Darion, "I cannot make the choice for you. This must be your decision."

Darion nodded, staring at his father. "I will become a Grey Warden, Duncan. If it means that Howe will be brought to justice in the future, I will do it."

"Good, now please come with me. You too my lady." Duncan said as he opened the door to the servant's entrance.

His mother shook her head, "No, Duncan. I will stay here and guard my husband."

"Eleanor…" His father said, barely lifting his head.

"Hush, Bryce," she said, cutting him off. "I will buy us some time to escape, and I'll kill every bastard that comes through that door trying to get to you."

Darion stopped for a moment, knowing that she must do this but all the same he didn't want her to. He walked over to her, hugging her tightly as she returned the embrace. "I'll get revenge on Howe, I swear it." Darion whispered.

"I know you will," his mother replied as she let him go, drawing her bow.

As Darion and Merik followed Duncan into the cellar he felt a single tear roll down his eye.

After a while of walking in a dank dark tunnel the group came to an exit. It was morning at this point, but it brought no cheer with it. "Will we be going to Ostagar immediately?" Darion asked, calming himself a little.

Duncan shook his head, "No, not immediately. We'll be going to a few other places in search of other Wardens. Our numbers are few and the Darkspawn have ceased their attacks at Ostagar for the moment, so I must have more recruits."

Darion sighed, "Alright, but we must make this quick. I want Howe brought to justice as soon as possible."

Duncan nodded, "I know, don't worry. Now we must get going, there may be a few of Howe's men patrolling the area as we speak." Darion nodded as he followed Duncan into the unknown.


	2. Lax the Dwarf

Lax walked into the small house he was told to go to by Beraht, when he walked in he heard the crime lord talking to his sister, "I can't keep gambling on you forever precious. You've got a sweet look, something to light a man on fire. But you've gotta make it count."

Lax's sister sighed, looking up at the dwarf as innocently as possible, "Please, Beraht, not in front of my brother."

"Why not? He knows the slope of the land, don't you boy?"

At this Lax growled, "Didn't I tell you not to talk that way to my sister?"

Smugly the crime lord replied, "You've told me a lot of things. Not one of which meant more than a fart in the middens." Lax glowered at Beraht, who seemed to be getting a lot of enjoyment out of this. "Before you met me your sister was just another duster. Now check her out." He said, pointing to Lax's sister. Lax sighed, looking at her with a look of guilt on his face. She was beautiful for a casteless, the garbage that the nobles tossed out of the window. She was their only hope of getting out of the cesspool they called home. "All she's gotta do is find a lord, squeeze out some kid that looks like him, and we're all living the easy life in the Diamond Quarter."

Lax couldn't help but agree with him, it was a simple plan. But was it really worth all of this? He was a criminal working for this pig. He wanted to be something good. But because of the caste system he wasn't entitled to even a pile of dust in the commons. Let alone the Diamond Quarter, where the nobles resided. "Please don't get involved," his sister said. "You know that never goes well."

"He's right…" Lax sighed. "Whatever it takes to get out of this cesspool." While he cared for his sister, there was only so much he could take from the ruling nobles.

"Listen to the kid," Beraht said. "He knows the deal you made. He lays low and does whatever job I don't wanna risk anyone valuable on. In return, I put out coin so you can doll yourself up and get a bellyful of some nobleman's brat." He smiled evily, "Then you both go free. And I get to join the family and be called, 'my lord,' for the rest of the little prince's life."

Lax looked at Beraht, "We've kept our part of the deal." He said angrily.

"Well, unless I start seeing results, we're going to renegotiate." Beraht looked over at Lax's sister, "I'm giving you another week, precious. If you haven't found a patron, you're back to sweeping streets."

Quietly she said, "But I have, I've met someone that is, I didn't want to promise but he seemed interested."

Lax looked stroked his beard as he spoke to Beraht, "So get off her back and tell me my job for today. I don't want to drag this out any longer than it has to be."

"You're buddy Leske's waiting outside. He knows what I'll need from you today." He leaned in closer to Lax. Whispering maliciously, "Don't even think about bungling this job. You're whole families on loose ends with me right now. And I know that you don't have anywhere else to turn." After saying this he stormed off, pulling out some coin and fiddling with it.

"I'm sorry you had to see that," Lax's sister said sadly.

"I've seen it before, and I'll see it again, Rica." Lax said, sitting down and sighing. He wished he had enough money to buy mugs ale, or something to get him drunk right now. Normally he was cheerful enough but dealing with Beraht just bothered him to no end.

"And I feel like every time you do, it kills something in you." Rica said worriedly. "You were such a loving child; I hate what this place made you into." She paused for a moment. Whatever she had to say seemed to cause her a great deal of emotional pain. "That's why I didn't tell you. Beraht's been warning me ever since his other two girls found patrons at Lord Harrowmont's reception. They've been getting gifts already. Lord Rousten gave one a surface-silk gown. She's not even pregnant yet. Beraht's getting impatient."

Lax sighed, "I just wish I didn't have to kiss up to that cave tick."

"You know the other options," she said, defeated. "Cleaning middens, begging, going to the surface." To Lax, the last option didn't seem like such a bad idea. "No…unless you find a way to save us all from Darkspawn and become a paragon, we're pretty much on Beraht's leash for life."

Lax shrugged his shoulders, not wanting to be late for the job Beraht had for them, "I'm sorry, but I need to get going before Beraht comes back. Goodbye Rica."

She smiled sweetly at him, "Goodbye brother."

Lax turned and left, growling. His father had found a way out of here, why couldn't he? He just wished this was all over so he could make something out of himself. He left the small building, looking around dust town. Everywhere he looked there was someone starving or begging for coin. He sighed, even if he managed to get out of here dust town would always be there. It sticks to the skin some would say. He saw a dwarf leaning against a pile of rocks with a bit of stubble on his face and looking more well fed then the average duster. He headed to that direction. "Leske, you bastard, how's it shaping?"

Leske and him exchanged a quick high five, "What can I say? No money, no girls, no place to call my own. This is the life, eh?"

Lax shrugged his shoulders, "It could be worse, we could be dead."

Leske smacked him across the back of the head, "Are you stupid as well as ugly? Being dead is a nice retreat compared to this treatment. At least when you're dead the bugs treat you equally."

Lax kicked his friend in the shins, "Just tell me why Beraht sent you. And no more of your games ya worthless duster."

"And people wonder where that grumpy old dwarf image comes from." Leske said as he rubbed his shin. "Boss says we're out for a search-and-discipline. One of his smugglers is holding out on him. Name's Oskias, some surfacer, Beraht got word that he's been selling some shipments topside that never make it to Beraht's ears down here. He wants us to find the rotter and see what goods he's holding back."

"He's stealing from Beraht? I like him already." Lax said, truthfully.

"Well, yours'll be a short and tragic relationship." Leske smiled for a moment, "You ready to show him some pain?"

"Let's just get this over with, I don't like the idea of working for Beraht like this."

"Poetry to my ears." Leske replied, chuckling.

As the two proceeded into the commons they had some small conversations, not getting into too much detail on any subject. Sometimes they'd get into a small tussle and laugh it out a few moments later. They made it into the commons. No one bothered paying any mind to them. They were casteless, lower than garbage. They could pretty much move around as they pleased. Just so long as they didn't bother any of the common folk. At least they didn't have to deal with rodents here all the time. Lax had always enjoyed coming to the commons. It made him feel like part of a crowd. However, the tattoo under his left eye made sure that he was well aware of being different. He rubbed the large battleaxe he had on his back and sighed. Deciding to just get this job over with.

Everywhere he stepped in the commons he knew they were whispering behind his back. He and Leske moved quicker to find their prey. They quickly found the tavern, by the name of Tapsters Tavern, they were looking for, before entering Leske said, "Beraht will want to see proof that the surfacer's dead."

Lax nodded, "I know the drill Leske, don't worry."

"I feel better already. I know that you'll be there helping me the entire time."

"Ah shut it ya nug dropping."

"What'd you say you bronto humper?" Leske replied, the two jumped into a quick brawl, Lax coming out on top. Once they were finished and people stopped staring they quickly entered the tavern.

Inside they found a few dwarves getting drunk out of their minds, a common occurrence. Seeing someone that matched the description they quickly made their way to him. While they were walking Lax could have sworn he heard one of the drunken patrons say, "I hear the warrior caste is holding a proving so the Grey Wardens can look for candidates."

It was a shame that he couldn't join the proving. Everyone in dust town knew he was one of the better fighters in the area. He sighed and kept moving, sitting in front of Oskias. "Hey, I was saving that seat." He said, obviously insulted.

Leske leaned over the chair, holding a knife to his throat, "That's real thoughtful Oskias," he said, a gleam in his eye. "It's tiring work looking for you."

"H-how do you know my name?" He asked, trembling with fear.

"Did you think Beraht wouldn't find out you're cheating on him?" Lax asked, leaning forward and putting on a frightful glare.

"Look, I-I've always been loyal to Beraht." He said, stammering. "He's been good to my family; I-I know how much I owe him."

"Save your excuses," Lax replied. "Leske, search his bags." He ordered.

"My pleasure," Leske replied, lowering his knife and going through the bag.

"W-wait!" Oskias said nervously. "I-I do have some lyrium. It's just ore, I made a side deal with one of the mining families. If it worked out, I was gonna bring Beraht his cut, I swear. I-I'd be crazy not to."

"Suicidal one might say," Leske said maliciously.

"That's good enough for us." Lax said, drawing his weapon. "You're going down."

That was when Oskias began shouting fearfully, "No! I'll give it back! I'll find more! I'll get Beraht double what he can in a year, triple! I swear! Just please don't kill me!"

"Stop squirming or this is really going to hurt." Leske said, holding the knife back up to his throat. "Could everyone who isn't about to die please turn around for a moment." He said to everyone in the bar. "This may be unpleasant." When he said this everyone turned his or her head away. "Thank you." He said.

"Y-you can't do this!" Oskias began shouting again. "Help! Call the guardsman! This is murder." As he shouted no one paid any attention, acting like they didn't hear a word of it.

One dwarf stood up, "You two let me know if you need anything," he looked like the barkeep. "I'll be in the back."

"It's just a bunch of rocks!" Oskias said, sobbing. "You're going to kill me for that…?"

"Sorry, salroka. A job's a job." Lax said, leaning back in his seat.

When he said this Leske slit his throat and he bled out onto the floor. Lax bent down to the body, picking up the few lyrium nuggets he had on his person and putting them in his pocket. No one paid any mind to him, as he lay dead on the ground and the two slipped out of Tapsters Tavern without a word. "We have to get this stuff back to Beraht before he wonders what we've been doing." Leske said, completely serious.

Lax nodded, "Of course, let's get going." As he said this they went to Beraht's small shop, he was in there, along with a dwarf woman whom he was talking with.

"The king is old," Beraht said. "His rule won't hold much longer."

"Prince Bhelen seems far more sympathetic to our interests then the others." She said, looking Beraht straight in the eye.

"Bhelen has some tastes of his own that he knows I can provide…" He drifted off when he saw the two dwarves standing at the entrance. "We'll finish this later." He said bluntly, walking to Leske and Lax. "It's about time you two showed up. What happened with Oskias?"

Lax walked up, giving the lyrium to Beraht. "He's dead, here's the lyrium."

Beraht greedily too the nuggets, "Excellent, I'll send someone out to…handle the clean-up. Not you though, I have another job in mind for you."

"Do I get to make some other duster cry?" Lax replied sarcastically.

"Not if you know what's healthy for you." Beraht snapped. "This one, I want you invisible." He calmed himself for a moment. "The warrior caste is hosting a proving today - all the best fighters, last man standing – you know, that sort of thing. They're showing off for some Grey Warden who's looking for candidates to drag off to a lifetime of eternal glory." That sounded very good to Lax. It was a shame he couldn't participate. "Now, it's not often we get every name fighter in Orzammar lined up like that, and I have certain acquaintances who…take an interest in this sort of thing."

"You're taking bets on the fighters?" Leske asked, looking at Beraht.

"There's a lot of coin to be made when people get the fever up. Favored fighter's an officer named Mainar, veteran of four Darkspawn campaigns. Everd's a long shot. Just got back from a Deep Roads offensive. Some young buck that has all the ladies drooling." He paused for a second. "I've got a lot of money riding on him. Mine and other people's. I expect to see that eight-to-one pay off, understand?"

The two friends nodded, saying, "Aye."

"The fight gets announced to contestants themselves to prevent…illegal gambling. So first you'll have to Everd, see who he's fighting, and when. When the name Mainar comes up, I want you to slip this drug into the bastard's water." He handed Lax a vial of some grayish liquid. "It'll slow his reflexes, just enough to take the edge off, not enough to show. But it wears off quickly, so don't use it until before the fight."

Lax sighed, "Alright, we'll go do it right now."

"You bet you will," Beraht said firmly. "Here's your pass to get on the grounds. The proving starts as soon as the clock strikes." He glared at the two for a moment, "And when I say I have coin on this, I'm not talking about some pittance, like the value of your life. If I don't see Everd's name on the winner's sheet, you'd better make sure I never see you, or your sister again."

That last comment struck a cord in Lax, making him cringe and reach for his weapon. Leske stopped him by grabbing his hand before it made it to the axe's handle, shaking his head. Luckily Beraht didn't see this. The two quickly stepped out of the shop, not saying a word until they got to the proving grounds. They showed the guards their papers and they let the two through without question, telling them to stay in the trenches. When they reached Everd's room they saw him laying flat on the floor, vomit lying around his entire body. "Sod it!" Leske said. "He's stone drunk! He could draw a dead man for an opponent and he'd still lose." He groaned, "Beraht's gonna kill us if we slip up on this. He's still made about the time I accidentally told that barkeep Beraht had demanded free ale delivered to my door." Lax was about to say something about that when Leske snapped his fingers, that was never a good sign. "Hey, I just had an idea!"

"Do I want to hear this?" Lax asked hesitantly.

"So, you've been rubbing my nose in how you're the meanest thing with a blade." Leske taunted.

"I meant like in bed with a woman Leske," Lax joked.

"Anyway," Leske said, ignoring the comment, "Everd's armor is over there, and you two are about the same size."

Lax sighed, "I'll put on the armor now. You find Mainar and drug him."

Leske nodded, "Got it! It'll help if you can distract him, though. Y'know, just talk to him so I can sneak past him without him noticing. We need to do it quickly, we don't have much time."

Lax quickly moved over to Mainar's room, striking up a quick conversation. All the while Mainar made fun of him for being casteless. When he saw Leske give him the thumbs up when he left his fighting chambers he quickly broke off the conversation and walked away. The announcer called the two supposed fighters to the proving grounds. Lax slipped on Everd's amour, keeping the helmet over his face at all times. He quickly headed up to the fighting ring. When he entered he looked up at the announcer's area, seeing a fairly old looking human with interesting weapons and a look of wisdom that could have surpassed their king. Their eyes locked for a moment. Then his opponent walked to him and they prepared to fight.

The sound for the fight to begin rang loud and true. There was a moment of silence as the two approached each other, then their blades locked. They crossed blades several times, neither one giving an edge. It seemed almost like Mainar had the advantage. Then the drug kicked in, his reflexes slowed and Lax saw an opening. He took it without question, knocking his opponent back and flat on the ground. Lax held the blade to his throat and the announcer called the fight to a close, smiling Lax stood tall. Or, as tall as a dwarf could stand, "The winner is Everd!" The announcer called out.

A few more fights came up but none was as threatening as the first one. It seemed almost like the two casteless dwarves would pull this scheme off. Then when the announcer was about ready to say who the winner of the proving was, something unexpected happened. Lax raised his hands in victory, cheering loudly. Then all went silent as Everd managed to sober himself up just enough to get out onto the field. The announcer looked horrified, "What is the meaning of this?" The Grey Warden seemed unaffected about this.

"Oh damn…" Lax said.

"Remove your helmet, warrior, and let all who watched you see your face." The announcer said, furious.

Lax removed his helmet, revealing that he was of no caste. There was a gasp as the guards swarmed over him, the Grey Warden looked more intrigued than angered. He stopped the announcer and had a conversation, that was all Lax saw before he was knocked unconscious.

"Are you awake yet?" Leske's voice broke Lax from his slumber. "Can you hear me?"

Lax shook his head, it was pounding, but he was alive and that's what mattered. He looked around. He was in a jail cell, "How hard did they sodding hit you?" He heard Leske asked. "Did you have to put up such a fight?"

"I just hope I took some down with me!" Lax exclaimed, standing up.

"Oh you did," Leske sighed. "And don't you think they didn't show me their appreciation. One of the guards recognized me and figured we must be working together. They burned three candles to the stump interrogating me about who put us up to this. I think they knew, you know, about Beraht."

Lax took a better look around his surroundings, noticing some very different things about his cell. "This doesn't look like a typical guard's cell." He pointed out.

"Huh, I guess not. I mean, I've been in most of 'em. They don't usually have…this many bloodstains on the wall…" he paused for a second. "Uh…you see any way out of this?"

"Good, you're both awake." A dwarf woman walked into the room, Lax recognized her as the dwarf talking with Beraht earlier.

"You look familiar," Lax said. "Do I know you?"

"You might wanna watch your words duster," she said sharply. "They might be the last ones you get."

Leske whispered to him, "That's Jarvia you moron! Don't dig us in deeper by insulting Beraht's top lieutenant."

"You caused a lot of trouble today," Jarvia continued. "Beraht lost a hundred sovereigns for lord Vollney. The entire proving was declared invalid, and the assembly already called for an investigation. You can't imagine the state Beraht was in when he told me to get you.

"Where's Beraht?" Lax asked. "I can try to explain things to him."

"All you need to know is that you exposed him in front of the entire warrior caste!" Jarvia snapped. "Now they're asking questions, and as long as you have tongues to answer them, you're a threat. Enjoy your last night together boys." The two friends looked at each other nervously. "Beraht'll be by soon to make sure you maintain your silence." When she walked off a guardsman took her place, patrolling the area and taunting them from time to time.

At one pass Lax groaned a bit and he walked over to them, "Quit you're whining. You're giving me a headache."

"Oh, that's how it started for me too." Lax said, looking at him.

"What are you talking about?" The guard asked, leaning closer to lax. Once he was within arms length Lax grabbed the guard and slammed his head so hard into the bars blood spurted out of his face. The guard fell to the ground dead. Lax tried to pick up the keys but they landed too far away from him. Spotting some broken wood and metal he began digging through it, finding a large enough piece of metal for Leske to use as a lock pick. He tossed it to him. Leske immediately set to work fiddling with the lock, opening it with ease. Leske then went over to the dead guard's corpse and picked up the keys, opening Lax's door.

When he could step outside of his cell Lax said, "You're the best wingman ever, buddy."  
>"Hold it, I'm not wingman." Leske replied grumpily.<p>

"Well, I was the one who killed the guard." Lax said.

"And I was the one who picked the lock."

"Yeah, I beat Mainar."

"I drugged him."

Lax paused, realizing they were going in circles. He looked at his partner, saying, "We'll continue this when we're free dwarves."

"Winner by forfeit!" Leske exclaimed happily.

"We'll settle this…when we're free dwarves." Lax said, annoyed.

The two went to a fairly large chest that held their weapons, picking them up. Leske quietly opened a door leading out of the small jail, looking around. He quickly went back in and walked over to Lax, "Two of 'em guarding the door." He said.

Lax nodded, "Alright, we'll both get one, quietly." The dwarves moved back to the door, sliding it open and drawing their weapons. Leske stabbed one of the guards through his back while Lax chopped down on his head. Both of the guards fell to the ground without a sound. The two friends moved onwards, they were in an unfamiliar territory. It looked as if it was a natural cavern that had been edited to add some rooms. They quickly made their way down the long hallways. They went into a storage area where a couple of guards were talking. Leske and Lax charged the group, making quick work of them since they didn't know they were there. Lax wiped the blood off his face, looking to the only exit in the room. "Do you get the feeling this has all been too easy?" he asked.

Leske nodded, "Yeah, so far we haven't run into much resistance. And why do I get the feeling that the next room is going to be bad news for us?"

Lax hesitantly went to the door, opening it as Leske followed. The two dwarves looked around this next room, it was another storage area, and they saw nothing. When they walked into the room they heard a familiar voice sound off from deeper within the room, "If she shows the same loyalties as her brother than I should just cut her loose." Lax closed his eyes, recognizing the voice as Beraht's; he also understood whom he was talking about.

"You mean the girl you have all dolled up in lace? I'd sure love to get my hands on her." Said another person. Lax didn't recognize this voice.

"Hah, I know what you mean." Said another voice Lax didn't recognize.

"By all means, take her." Beraht said as Lax rounded the corner in rage. Leske was following close behind, trying to stop the angered dwarf. "And let me tell you, she tastes as good as she looks." The two other dwarves began laughing with glee. Beraht turned his head to walk away when he saw Lax and his partner standing there, "How did that thing get out of its cell?" Beraht asked. "Ah well, let's cut him up boys." After that there were no other words to be exchanged, it was a kill or be killed situation. And Lax wasn't going to be the latter.

The two unfamiliar dwarves charged, Lax and Leske made short work of them. They were obviously new recruits who needed much more experience. The two smiled cockily at Beraht, who was drawing his sword and shield. Without warning the crime lord charged the two, separating them. Lax swung his two handed axe down at his opponent, but it was blocked by a shield. Lax saw Leske quickly strike out at Beraht, but the lone dwarf managed to stop both of Leske's weapons with his one small axe. The three held their ground, there was no doubt that Beraht was strong. Leske and Lax jumped back, Beraht set his shield in front of him in a defensive manner. The two other dwarves charged the crime lord, swinging in a coordinated dance of death in an attempt to lay a finger on the pugnacious opponent. Beraht simply dodged the large axe while casually blocking the two smaller weapons wielded by Leske. The two dwarves jumped back once more, looking at each other and exchanging a small nod. Leske charged once more, swinging again and again at Beraht, who continued blocking casually. All the while not noticing that he was being backed into the corner. Lax would attack on occasion to try and guide the crime lord to the designated position. Luckily, the strategy worked and Beraht's back touched the corner of the room. His eyes widened in surprise as Leske backed off and Lax jumped in. He swung his two handed axe at his former boss, who couldn't dodge the blow. Beraht's shield smashed to bits under the weight of Lax's attack. While the crime lord was stunned Leske stabbed him in the stomach. Beraht dropped his axe, stumbling around as blood began pouring from his stomach. He looked up for one last time at Lax, who had picked up his axe and swung it at Beraht's head.

The crime lord's feet crumpled beneath him as his head went across the room, stopping at the exit for the room. There was a moment of silence; the two left standing didn't say a thing in pure awe. Finally Leske began laughing. "We did it!" he exclaimed. "Beraht's finally dead!"

"What's all this 'we' business, Leske?" Lax asked, leaning against a wall and breathing heavily. "In my opinion I did all the work."  
>Leske waved a hand at Lax, "Whatever, let's discuss this once we get out of this hell hole." He pointed to the door Beraht's head was in front of. "That seems like our best bet at this point."<p>

Lax nodded, heading quickly to the door, "Well then, let's get the hell out of here. I don't want Jarvia coming by and seeing our handiwork."

"You can say that again," Leske sighed as he followed Lax.

The two went up a fairly long staircase, not knowing where it would take them. When they reached the top they saw a door, opening it they realized that they were in Beraht's old shop in the commons. "Well, this is unexpected." Lax said as he stepped onto the shop's floor. He looked at the door he just came through, it was fairly well hidden, those who weren't searching for it would definitely never stumble upon it by accident, or happen to glance at it and realize something was wrong.

"All I can say is that I'm happy this is over. Of course I'll have to lie low for a few days, with Beraht's death there will be a mad scramble for who gets to rule the carta he ran. I don't want a part in that." Leske said as they headed to the shop's exit.

"Well, I plan on getting out of this city," Lax said, opening the door. "The sooner I abandon this 'casteless' title the better."

After saying this the two heard a guard shout, "There are the fugitives! Quickly, before they have time to escape!"

"Oh damn…" Lax sighed, looking around as guards surrounded them. "You looking forward to another jail cell?"

Leske shook his head, "Hell no I'm not."

The two were about to give into their fate, the guards slowly closing in on them. When the Grey Warden at the tournament came through the ranks of dwarven soldiers, "I'm certain that will be unnecessary." He said to the guard who was obviously leading this band of soldiers. "I came here looking for recruits, and it seems I have found one."

"But he's a criminal," The dwarf replied, very upset.

"A criminal that has bested your finest soldiers and worst criminals you have to offer." The man replied, could he have known about what they have done with Beraht?

"You're asking me to follow you to the surface?" Lax asked, amazed.

"Indeed I am, you show strength that I could use. Will you join me?"

Lax felt him being nudged by Leske, "Say yes you fool!" his friend said. "Before he comes to his senses and chooses me!"

Lax paused for a moment, thinking. After about a minute he nodded, "I will, under one condition. I get to say goodbye to my sister."

"That won't be necessary brother," He heard Rica say from behind the Grey Warden. "I already know. Go on, make something of yourself."

"And what about you?" Lax asked, looking at his sister. "How will you take care of yourself?"  
>She smiled at him, "Don't worry, my patron won't let me starve. I'll be fine, he's already moved me to better lodgings. Go on and live your life, I'll be fine."<p>

Lax sighed, looking up at the human, "Fine, I'll go with you."

The Grey Warden smiled, "Excellent, follow me. I'll explain everything while we head to our next destination." As he said this he moved towards the exit of the commons.

Lax followed, asking, "What is our next destination?"  
>"The circle of magi." The Grey Warden replied curtly.<p>

Lax followed the Grey Warden to the surface. When the two made it out Lax suddenly felt light headed as a breath of fresh air hit him in the face. He looked up at the sky. There was no roof, how did the humans and elves live in these conditions? The Grey Warden signaled for Lax to follow a little longer. Everything was fairly dark on the surface, this must have been this "night" thing he heard some of his friends talk about at tapsters. They reached a small camp; two tents were set up there. By a fire sat a man with a shaved head and a large dog, about as big as a normal sized dwarf. "Who's he?" Lax asked the Grey Warden.

"Darion Cousland," the Grey Warden replied. "Be very careful when talking to him. He just lost his family and I don't need him to lose his senses while I'm trying to recruit him."

Lax nodded, walking over to the fire and sitting next to the human. After a few seconds passed Lax said with a smile, "What's up, nug humper?"


	3. Lucindae the Mage

Lucindae entered the Harrowing chamber, she was incredibly nervous. This was the point where she either became a mage, or perished along with so many others. There was really no pressure then. What did she have to worry about? All she was doing was entering the Fade, the most dangerous place for anyone with magical potential. She looked around. The room was darker then most of the others, and in the center was a small glowing table. The Harrowing chamber was full of templars, and Irving was standing there as well with a look of pride, and worry, on his face. Knight-Commander Greagoir was standing right next to him, looking as stern and cold as ever. He walked towards the young woman, "Magic exists to serve man." He said sternly. "And never to rule over him. Thus spoke the prophet Andraste as she cast down the Tevinter Imperium, ruled by mages who had brought the world to the edge of ruin. Your magic is a gift, but it is also a curse, for demons of the dream realm, the Fade, are drawn to you, and seek to use you as a gateway into this world."

Irving stepped forward, speaking to her in a more kindly manner, "This is why the Harrowing exists." He said. "The ritual sends you into the Fade, and there you will face a demon, armed only with your will."

Lucindae gulped, "What happens if I cannot defeat the demon?" She asked nervously.

"It will turn you into an abomination." Greagoir said bluntly. "Then the templars will be forced to slay you." He pointed to the glowing table in the center, "This is lyrium. The very essence of your magic, and your gateway into the Fade."

"The Harrowing is a secret out of necessity, child." Irving said, reassuringly. "Every mage must go through this trial by fire. As we succeeded, so shall you. Keep your wits about you, and remember the Fade is a realm of dreams. The spirits may rule it, but your own will is real."

"The apprentice must go through this test alone, first enchanter." Greagoir interrupted. "You are ready," he stated as he pointed to the table of lyrium.

Slowly Lucindae approached the table, anxiety building up in her body. She didn't know what to do with this, most of the time she was kept away from the substance because of its highly addictive qualities. But now she was expected to use it to enter the Fade. She took in a large breath of air and finally placed her hand on the glowing substance that lay before her. Light immediately engulfed her hand and she jumped back, soon it swallowed her entire body as she felt like she was caught in an explosion. Everything went white for a few moments and she passed out.

When Lucindae awoke she had no idea where she was. She looked around. She was on an island made of entirely dead grass and used soil, a tree was in front of her, twisted and gnarled as ruins were floating around the outside of the island. She also had a strange feeling, like she was there yet not there at the same time. Was this what it felt like to be awake during a dream? She sighed, knowing her mission. She walked quickly through a path on the island, hoping it would lead her to her goal. She came up to a disturbing looking statue, it was a hooded man but his arms turned to tentacles and there were horns sticking out of his head. She backed away from it nervously, deciding to continue following the path. While she walked on the path she came up to some strange plants that seemed to be moving of their own free will. She felt that touching them wasn't in her best interest.

It was then that she saw a small ball of light floating towards her, and she raised an eyebrow curiously. Then, out of nowhere, it shot a beam of light at her. She quickly jumped to the side as it grazed her cloak, which began smoldering from the heat. She launched an arcane bolt at what she could only assume was a wisp and it disappeared into nothingness. She took a deep breath, was this what she was going to face in this realm? She shook her head and kept moving, all the while feeling like she was being watched.

She rounded a corner and another ball of light narrowly missed her, she shot a lighting bolt at the wisp that was attacking her and it also disappeared. She wished she had her staff with her. It helped her to concentrate her magic at her opponents. She stopped when she saw another ball of light, she cast another arcane bolt before it had the chance to attack and it fell to pieces. As she continued on her way the feeling like she was being watched kept getting stronger and stronger, she was exceedingly nervous at this point. She jumped when she heard a voice coming from below her, "Someone else thrown to the wolves. As fresh and unprepared as ever." Lucindae looked around, seeing only a rat she raised an eyebrow. "It isn't right that they do this!" The rat exclaimed. Lucindae stepped back, realizing that it could talk. "Not to you, not to me, not to anyone."

"You're a talking rat," Lucindae stated.

The rat began laughing, "You think you're really here? In that body? You look like that because you think you do!" The rat sighed sadly, "It's always the same. But it's not your fault. You're in the same boat I was, aren't you?" It was then the rat turned into a red headed young man. "Allow me to welcome you to the Fade. You can call me, well…Mouse."

"You can change your shape?" Lucindae asked, truly amazed.

"Like I said, in this place, you are what you perceive yourself to be. I think I used to be like you…before. The templars kill you if you take too long, you see. They think you failed, and they don't want something getting out." Mouse slumped his shoulders in defeat, "That's what they did to me, I think. I have no body to reclaim. And you don't have much time before you end up the same."

"What am I supposed to do?" Lucindae asked, remembering why she was there.

"There's something here," Mouse replied, "contained, just for an apprentice like you. You have to face the creature, a demon, and resist it, if you can. That's your way out, or your opponent's, if the templars wouldn't kill you. A test for you, a tease for the creatures of the Fade."

Lucindae was grateful to have Mouse there to explain everything to her, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was…off about him. "Why pit me against such a creature?" She asked.

"A question for those in the tower." Mouse said. "Maybe you'll be lucky enough to ask. Maybe someday, so will I. There are others here, other spirits. They will tell you more, maybe help. If you can believe anything you see." Mouse then stepped closer to Lucindae, "I'll follow, if that's alright. My chance was long ago, but you…you may have a way out." He shifted back into his mouse form, saying, "A dangerous spirit is not far. Don't go near it unless you're ready to fight."

She nodded her thanks, following the path. As she continued she found what looked like a clearing for some beast's living quarters, except the outer rim of it was lined with small fires. She decided that it wouldn't be in her best interests to go there unless she absolutely had to, there was a sinister feeling to that area. She kept walking and found another bright light, she assumed it was another wisp but when she got closer she saw it was in the shape of a man. She approached it hesitantly and found that there were a multitude of weapons lying on the racks all around it. She looked upon the spirit and saw it was wearing the white armor of the templar, she tried to look at its face but it was covered with a helmet. "Another mortal thrown into the flames and left to burn, I see." It said to her as she greeted the spirit. As it spoke she got the feeling of security. "Your mages have devised a cowardly test. Better you were pitted against each other to prove your mettle with skill, than to be sent unarmed against a demon."

"You know why I'm here?" She asked.

"You are not the first sent here for such testing." The spirit replied. "Nor shall you be the last, I suspect. That you remain means you have not defeated your hunter. I wish you a glorious battle to come."

"What kind of spirit are you?" Lucindae asked, looking upon the bright figure in awe.

"I am valor, a warrior spirit." It replied proudly. "I hone my weapons in search of the perfect expression of combat."

"I need your help." Lucindae said hopefully.

"Of course, you are not the first mortal to seek my aid." Valor said understandingly. "I am not here to assist you, however. My purpose is to seek perfection, creating the ultimate weapon for the pursuit of valor."

She looked upon all of the weapons curiously, "Would one of these weapons affect the demon?" She asked, her eye glancing at a masterfully made staff.

"Without a doubt." Replied Valor. "In this realm, everything that exists is the expression of a thought. Do you think these blades be steel? The staves wood? Do you believe they draw blood? A weapon is a single need for battle, and my will makes that need a reality." He paused for a second, as if thinking. "Do you truly desire one of my weapons?" he asked. "I will give you one to you…if you agree to duel me, first. Valor shall test your mettle, as it should be tested."

"I am no warrior, I would be no match against you." Lucindae said in surprise.

"Then what match would you be against the demon?" Valor asked. "At least I would give you an honorable death, and not devour your essence like a greedy child." Lucindae couldn't doubt the truth in the words the spirit said.

"And what are the rules of this duel?" Lucindae asked, considering the possibility.

"If I believe you capable of slaying the demon, I will stop the duel and give you the staff." Valor replied, he must have noticed her glancing at the masterwork staff. "If I find you unworthy," he continued, "I will slay you. I trust those rules are simple enough to remember, mortal?"

Lucindae scratched her chin, thinking heavily about her options. On one hand, she'd get the staff and be able to focus her magic and have a better chance of defeating the demon. On the other hand, the spirit of valor could kill her. After a few minutes of thinking she decided, "I will agree to your duel, Valor." She figured that if she couldn't defeat the spirit without the staff, then she'd have no hope of defeating the demon.

"As you wish, mortal." He said, picking up a sword on the ground. "Do you understand the rules I explained to you?"

She simply nodded, preparing an arcane bolt. The spirit shouted loudly, "Our duel begins now! Fight with Valor!"

Valor charged Lucindae, who shot him with an arcane bolt. All it did was slow the spirit down as he swung at her. Valor was slowed just enough for her to dodge the swipe, but only barely. She shot him with a blast of cold energy, freezing him in place as she prepared a lightning bolt. The spirit quickly broke free, swinging at her again. Just before he hit her with his sword Lucindae managed to launch a powerful electric charge. It hit Valor directly in the chest, sending him flying backwards. She shot another arcane bolt at him, the bolt slammed directly into Valor's face and he fell to the ground. She was about to launch another lightning bolt when he raised his hand. "Enough, your strength is sufficient to the task. The staff is yours."

She began panting. Launching that many spells in quick succession put her in a slightly weakened state. "Thank you." She managed to say, taking the staff he handed her.

"May you find glory in all your achievements, mortal." The spirit said, nodding his head.

Mouse looked up at her in surprise, "I can't believe it." He said. "You may have a chance of winning after all. But the demon is more powerful then the spirit. You might want to find something else to give you more of an edge."

She nodded, "I intend to do that." She replied, following the path even more. She came up to the end, finding a bear lying there. It was asleep but it felt as if the bear could sense their presence. Also, the bear looked diseased and mottled, as if it were rotting.

"Be cautious," Mouse said, worriedly. "This may not be the demon hunting you, but it is still dangerous."

She approached the bear and it managed to look up at her, "Hmm…" it said, sizing her up. "So, you are the mortal being hunted?" It's voice was sinister, she could also here another voice just beyond the demon's initial one, filled with malice. "And the small one…is he to be a snack for me?"

"I don't like this," mouse said nervously. "He's not going to help us…I think we should go."

The demon began sniffing the air, "No matter. The other demon will get you eventually, and perhaps there will even be scraps left." It said, getting up very slowly. It seemed like it wasn't willing to move at all.

"What kind of spirit are you?" Lucindae asked for the second time since she's been in the fade, this time with disgust and not awe.

"It's a demon." Mouse replied. "Maybe even more powerful then the one chasing after you."

The demon shook his head in annoyance, "Begone! Surely you have better things to do than bother sloth, mortal." It yawned. "I tire of you already." Sloth put laid his body on the ground, looking like it was going back to sleep.

"I need help fighting the demon." Lucindae stated.

"You have a very nice staff." Sloth yawned. "Why would you need me? Go. use your weapon since you have earned it. Be valorous." It taunted.

"He looks powerful," Mouse whispered. "It might be possible that he could…teach you to be like him."

"Like me?" Sloth asked. "You mean teach the mortal to take this form? Why? Most mortals are too attached to their forms to learn the change." Sloth lifted its head to examine Mouse. "You, on the other hand, little one, might be a better student. You let go of the human form years ago."

Mouse began stuttering, "I… don't think I'd make a good bear. How would I hide?"

"Hiding doesn't solve anything, Mouse. We need to face our fears if I'm going to get out of here." Lucindae stated.

"We?" Mouse questioned. "I have faced more in this place than you can imagine." He seemed angry and very defensive to Lucindae. "Fear is…just one more thing." He paused for a second, calming down. "But…you are right. Hiding doesn't help. I'm sorry it's the Fade. It changes you." He looked at Sloth, "I'll try. I'll try to be a bear, if you'll teach me."

Sloth waves his paw nonchalantly, "That's nice. But teaching is so exhausting. Away with you now."

Mouse sighed, "I told you he wasn't going to help us."

Lucindae swallowed he fear of the bear, stating bluntly, "Mouse wants to learn. Teach him."

Sloth sighed, "You wish to learn my form, little one? Then I have a challenge for your friend. Answer three riddles correctly, and I will teach you. Fail, and I will devour you both. The decision is yours."

Lucindae thought about it for a second, she decided it would be best to get every edge she could. And she truly did enjoy riddles, "I accept your challenge, Sloth." She said.

"Truly?" Sloth asked hopefully. "This gets more and more promising." He picked his head up, "My first riddle is this: I have seas with no water, coasts with no sand, towns without people, and mountains without land. What am I?"

Lucindae paced around for a moment, thinking of several possibilities. After a minute she turned to Sloth and said, "A map."

Sloth grunted with disapproval, "Correct. Let's move on. The second riddle: I'm rarely touched, but often held. If you have wit, you'll use me well. What am I?"  
>This one was slightly more complicated for Lucindae, she continued to pace around but she eventually thought she figured it out. "My tongue?" She asked, hopeful.<p>

"Yes, your witty tongue." Sloth replied sadly. "Fair enough. One more try, shall we? Often I will spin a tale, never will I charge a fee. I'll amuse you an entire eve, but, alas, you won't remember me. What am I?"

"A dream." Lucindae said, this one was actually fairly easy. She assumed Sloth made this one up so he could get this over with.

"You are correct." He stated. "Rather apropos in the fade. But you've won my challenge, and proven yourself an amusing distraction. So, I shall teach you my form. Now listen carefully…" Lucindae walked off for a while as Sloth began teaching Mouse how to change his form to a bear. She decided the information wouldn't benefit her in this place at all.

A few minutes passed and Lucindae heard a strange noise. She looked back at Mouse and saw he was a large bear. "Like this?" He asked Sloth. "Am I a bear? It feels…heavy."

Sloth grunted, looking at Mouse. "Close enough. Go then, and defeat your demon…or whatever you intend to do. I grow weary of your mortal prattling." After saying this Sloth went to sleep and no matter what the two did he wouldn't wake.

"We need to get to the demon's segment now." Mouse said in his new bear form. "Who knows how much longer you have until the templars decide to do you in."

Lucindae nodded, quickly going towards the area with all the fires. She encountered no resistance when getting there but the moment she stepped within the ring of fires a red blob of magma rose up from the ground, taking a roughly humanoid shape. "That is the spirit of Rage." Mouse said nervously. "He is the one you must kill."

"And so it comes to me at last." The demon said. Lucindae could feel pure hatred coming from the demon and touching her mind. She quickly blocked it out as the demon continued speaking. "Soon I shall see the land of the living with your eyes, creature. You shall be mine, body and soul."

"There's two of us and one of you." Lucindae said confidently.

"Amusing." The demon said, intrigued. "Have you not told it of our…arrangement, Mouse?"

"We don't have an arrangement, not anymore." Mouse said, bearing his fangs.

"Awww," the demon said, amused. "And after all those wonderful meals we have shared? Now suddenly the mouse has changed the rules?"

"I'm not a mouse now! And soon I won't have to hide! I don't need to bargain with you." Mouse said, laughing.

"We shall see." The demon said, no longer amused but simply angry.

It was then that the demon attacked the two, slamming into mouse with one flaming hand while trying to hit Lucindae with the other. Mouse used his teeth to latch onto the demon but the intensity of the heat got so bad he had to let go before his entire face was burned off. Lucindae stepped back just before the demon's claw hit her and she cast a spell of frost, hitting the demon directly. He yelled in pain as the ice encased his body, but it quickly melted and he was back on the offensive. He swung wildly around, trying to get at the two. Mouse would slam a mighty paw into the demon every now and again, knocking it back, while Lucindae cast her spells at it. Lucindae cast her frost spell one final time, this time the demon didn't thaw out and Mouse smashed it to bits with his mighty claws.

Once the fight was over mouse turned himself into a human again, turning to face Lucindae, "You did it, you actually did it! When you came I hoped you might be able to…but I never really thought any of you were worthy."

"It's all a little too easy…" Lucindae said, suspicious of her friend.

"That is because you are a true mage, one of the few." Mouse replied happily. "The others, they never had a chance. The templars set them up to fail, like they tried with you." It was then he became solemn. "I regret my part in it, but you have shown me that there is hope. You can be so much more than you know."

"So what is it you think you can get from me?" Lucindae asked, looking over Mouse.

"You defeated a demon, you completed your test. With time, you could become a master enchanter with no equal." Mouse said, complimenting her multiple times. "And maybe there's hope in that for someone as small and as…forgotten as me, if you want to help. There may be a way for me to leave here, to get a foothold outside. You just need to want to let me in." Lucindae thought that he sounded fairly sinister once he said the last statement.

"I'm starting to think the other demon wasn't my test." Lucindae said, backing away from mouse.

"What? What are you…of course it was! What else is here that could harm an apprentice of your potential?" He paused for a moment, Lucindae shook her head at him and he chuckled. "You are a smart one." His voice suddenly changed, it was more horrible then the other demons she heard before. This one filled her, and would have filled anyone else, with unmistakable terror. "Simple killing is a warrior's job. The real dangers of the Fade are preconceptions, careless trust…pride." Mouse's body began shifting and changing, growing to a large size. When he was done he was at least twice as tall as Lucindae and so horribly ugly she couldn't describe it. "Keep your wits about you, mage. True tests never end." After that he disappeared and Lucindae felt herself being pulled out by some outside force. She woke up in the Harrowing Chamber, only to pass out again due to lack of energy.

Lucindae opened her eyes slightly, everything was blurry and she had to squint. She heard a familiar voice say, "Are you alright? Say something, please."

She shook her head, looking at the source of the voice. She saw a young man wearing an apprentice's robe with long brown hair. "Jowan?" She asked, sitting up, she was in a bed inside the apprentices' sleeping area.

Jowan sighed with relief, "I'm glad you're alright, they carried you in this morning. I didn't even realize you've been gone all night. I'd heard about apprentices who never come back from the Harrowing. Is it really that dangerous? What was it like?"

"It was…harrowing." Lucindae replied, rubbing her head. It was pounding.

"Is that why they don't tell us what it's about?" Jowan asked, pacing. He stopped in front of her, "I know we're not supposed to know, but we're friends. Just a little hint, and I'll stop asking, I promise."

"I really shouldn't…" Lucindae replied, standing up. She was a bit wobbly but she didn't need any support.

"Hmmph, so much for friendship." Jowan said, crossing his arms. "I'll just leave you alone then. And now you get to move to the nice mage's quarters upstairs. I'm stuck down here and I don't know when they'll call me for my Harrowing."

"They'll summon you when you're ready, my friend." Lucindae replied, placing her hand on his shoulder.

Jowan shrugged off her hand, saying, "I've been here longer than you have…Sometimes I think they just don't want to test me."

"Maybe you're just not ready yet?" Lucindae asked, trying to cheer up her friend.

"I've been ready for a long time." Jowan replied. "I'm afraid they don't want me to take the test." He paused for a moment. "You do the Harrowing, the Rite of Tranquility…or you die. That's what happens."

"You're worrying too much, it's not good for you." Lucindae said, hoping he would cheer up, but getting a little annoyed at his wining.

Jowan shook his head, "I shouldn't waste your time with this. I was supposed to tell you to see Irving as soon as you woke up."

"What for?" She asked.

"He didn't tell me. About the Harrowing, I'd guess, but you never know with Irving." He replied, sighing. "You'd better not keep him waiting. We can speak later.

Lucindae sighed as he walked off, probably to brood somewhere. She began heading to Irving's chambers. She made it out of the apprentice quarters and looked around the tower. It was truly of a magnificent build, ornate marking surrounding every nook and cranny. Apprentices were everywhere, practicing their magic with basic level spells. She also noticed the templars, always watching. She remembered how the circle of magi was merely a pretty cage, but she held no animosity towards the circle, or the chantry, which demanded it be so. She knew of the risks that came with being a mage. It was possible that she could become possessed and turn into an abomination. It was for the safety of everyone else that they kept the mages here, with their phylacteries. She continued to Irving's chambers, deciding it wasn't good to keep the first enchanter waiting.

As she was walking to Irving's chambers she noticed that her hands felt very warm. She dismissed the idea of it being anything particularly dangerous and kept walking. She came across a new apprentice and one of the enchanters. They appeared to be training in fire spells. Lucindae sighed; fire was one of her worst types. Which was strange, considering that she was skilled in the primal talents of a mage. As she watched the enchanter tried desperately to calm the apprentice down. She smiled as she remembered that learning to breathe while controlling magic was one of the first, and most difficult, lessons a mage had to learn. Suddenly, the apprentice mage caught fire and began screaming in surprise. Lucindae quickly cast a spell of frost on the young apprentice. The fire went out with a hiss and the apprentice was left quivering on the floor. The enchanter checked to see if he was unharmed. Once that was over he looked up at Lucindae and nodded his thanks. Lucindae returned the gesture and continued walking. She could have sworn she heard the enchanter reprimanding the poor apprentice as she left the room.

She climbed some stairs, heading into the mage's quarters. She saw Owain, his face as cold and emotionless as ever. She waved at the tranquil and he did as well. She looked away, knowing that he could never feel emotions. She felt truly sorry for the man. It must have been horrible to never feel anything. She rounded a corner and found the room she was looking for. She walked in to find Irving and Greagoir as a man in white armor. He wasn't quite as old as Irving, but he looked as if he'd seen his fair share of years. She heard Greagoir arguing with Irving, as he often did. "Many have already gone to Ostagar." She heard the templar say firmly. "Wynne, Uldred, and most of our senior mages! We've committed enough of our own to this war effort."

"Your own?" Irving questioned calmly. "Since when have you felt such kinship with the mages, Greagoir? Or are you afraid to let the mages out from under chantry supervision, where they can actually use their Maker-given powers?" She nodded at Irving silently, knowing that he made a very good point. Greagoir was always hesitant to let the mages out even with Chantry supervision. That was the kind of man Greagoir was. He was always worried that the worst could happen.

Greagoir growled, pointing his finger at Irving. "How dare you suggest…"

The man in white armor stepped in between the two before Greagoir could finish his statement. "Gentlemen, please." He said, looking at the two. "Irving, someone is here to see you."

"You sent for me?" Lucindae said hesitantly as all eyes went to her.

"Ah, if it isn't our new sister in the circle." Irving said, walking towards her. "Come, child."

"This is?" The other man began as he raised an eyebrow.

"Yes." Irving replied. "This is she."

"Well, Irving, you're obviously busy." Greagoir said in a huff. "We will discuss this later." The templar walked out of the room, fist clenched.

"Of course." Irving said, watching the man leave. "Well, then…where was I?" he shook his head. "Oh, yes. This is Duncan, of the Grey Wardens."

Lucindae nearly gasped in surprise. A Grey Warden had actually come to the Circle of Magi? "A Grey Warden?" She asked. "In the tower?"

"Grey Wardens go wherever duty sends them." Duncan replied, smiling at her.

"You've heard about the war brewing to the south, I expect?" Irving asked. She nodded and the old man continued. "Duncan is recruiting mages to join the king's army at Ostagar."

"Why?" Lucindae asked hesitantly.

"Mages are uniquely equipped to combat Darkspawn." Duncan replied.

"What do you mean?" She asked, wondering how different mages were from warriors or rogues.

"The power you mages wield is an asset to any army." Duncan said, as much to Irving as to Lucindae. "Your spells are very effective against large groups of mindless Darkspawn. I fear if we don't drive them back, we may see another blight."

"Duncan you worry the poor girl, with talk of blights and Darkspawn." Irving said, seeing Lucindae shift about nervously. "This is a happy day for her."

"We live in troubled times, my friend." Duncan said, looking to Irving.

"We should seize moments of levity, especially in troubled times." Irving said, providing yet another good argument. He looked to Lucindae again. "The Harrowing is behind you. Your phylactery was sent to Denerim. You are officially a mage within the Circle of magi."

"Thank you, First Enchanter." Lucindae said as she bowed. She couldn't help but feel a little proud of her achievement.

"I'm sorry." Duncan said as she lifted her head back up, "what is this phylactery?"

"Blood is taken from all apprentices when they first come to the tower, and is preserved in special vials." Irving replied, almost smiling. Lucindae knew how Irving loved to give a lecture on any piece of information.

"So they can be hunted if they turn apostate." Duncan said, understanding the situation now. Lucindae cringed at the word apostate. Apostates were mages who broke away from the circle to live under their own rules. She had heard the stories of how apostates became maleficar, or worse, abominations.

"We have few choices." Irving replied. "The gift of magic is looked upon with suspicion and fear. We must prove we are strong enough to handle our power responsibly." He looked back at Lucindae. "You have done this. I present you with your robes, your staff, and a ring bearing the Circle's insignia." As he said this he went to his desk, picking up a robe with a staff and ring lying on top of it. As he gave it to her he smiled and said, "Wear them proudly, for you have earned them."

She accepted the items, bowing her head. "Thank you." She said.

"It goes without saying that you shall not discuss the Harrowing with those who have not undergone the right." Irving said, this time a little more sternly than usual. "Now, then…take your time to rest, or study in the library. The day is yours."

She nodded to the First Enchanter. "I will do that." She said, turning to leave.

"I will return to my quarters." Duncan said to the old man.

Lucindae turned around as Irving cleared his throat to get her attention. "Would you be so kind as to escort Duncan back to his room, child?"

She smiled kindly, saying, "It would be my pleasure."

"The guest quarters are on the east side of this floor." Irving said, pointing out of the room. "Close to the library, I might add. Now, if you'll both excuse me, I have matters to discus with Greagoir." He said with a deep sigh.

As he left Lucindae motioned for the Grey Warden to follow her. He nodded with a smile, politely following as he admired the beauty of the tower. They walked to the room without a word said between them. She felt like the Warden didn't want to talk, not because he was being impolite, but because he seemed to just want to admire the look of the tower. Once he walked into the room he turned around and said, "Thank you for escorting me." She left the room and heard the door close behind her.

She headed for her new quarters, unfolding her new robe. It was made out of a beautiful yellow silk while the bottom half had various shades of different colors. She made sure she was alone when she slipped it on. As soon as she did she felt slightly more powerful. This award would definitely help her in the future, should she ever need it. She took a better look at her staff. It was made out of superior materials. She also felt stronger as she held it in her hands. She quickly slipped on the ring with the symbol of the Circle imbued on it and left the room. As soon as she closed the door she saw Jowan standing in the hall. He seemed exceedingly worried. "I'm glad I caught up to you." He said when he saw the new mage. "Are you done talking with Irving?" He asked.

"I think I am, for now." She replied, sliding her staff onto a special harness on the back of her robes.

"I need to talk to you." He said, whispering. "Do you remember what we discussed this morning?"

"Why are you whispering?" She asked. "It looks very suspicious."

"Shh!" Jowan said sharply. "I…I just want to make sure we're not overheard. We should go somewhere else. I don't feel safe talking here."

"You're starting to worry me, Jowan." Lucindae said with sincerity. Her friend was obviously afraid of something, and she wanted to know what it was so she could help the poor man.

"I've been…troubled." Jowan sighed. "I'll explain. Come with me, please." He said, motioning for her to follow. She did so without complaint, hoping she could help Jowan with whatever problem he was having.

The two went into the chantry of the Circle. There was a young priestess standing in the corner. She looked very worried. "We should be safe here." Jowan said, holding the priestess' hand.

"In the chapel?" Lucindae asked. "The templar's favorite place?"

"We can see the door from here." The priestess replied. "If anyone comes, we'll change the subject."

"Who are you?" Lucindae asked, looking the woman over. She had red hair and was actually quite beautiful.

"A few months ago, I told you that I…met a girl." Jowan said, almost embarrassed. "This is Lily."

"An initiate?" Lucindae asked, very surprised. "That's forbidden, Jowan."

"So you can see why we wish to keep it a secret." Lily said, begging for Lucindae to be quiet.

"Lily's been given to the chantry." Jowan explained. "She's not allowed to have…relations with men. If anyone finds out…we'll both be in trouble."

Lucindae sighed, looking at her friend then the Lily. "You can trust me." She said with a smile. "I won't tell anyone."

"Thank you." Jowan said happily. "I knew you'd stand by me."

"So what is this all about?" She asked, wondering why Jowan had dragged her here.

"Remember I said that I didn't think they wanted to give me my Harrowing?" Jowan asked. Lucindae nodded, remember that conversation all too well. "I know why. They're…going to make me tranquil." He looked at Lucindae with pure desperation in his eyes. "They'll take everything that I am from me…my dreams, hopes, fears…my love for Lily. All gone…"

"That sounds terrible." Lucindae said with horror. She knew what tranquil were, but she never thought it'd happen to someone close to her.

"They'll extinguish my humanity." Jowan said sadly. "I'll just be a husk, breathing and existing, but not truly living."

"Why would they do this to you?" Lucindae asked, putting a comforting arm around her friend.

"There's…a rumor about me." Jowan said hesitantly. "People think I'm a blood mage." Lucindae raised an eyebrow. Maleficar, or blood mages, were mages who used their own life force, or the life force of someone else, to cast powerful spells. She shook her head. That wasn't possible for Jowan, he could barely tie his shoes, much less be some sort of evil blood mage. "They think making me a Circle mage will endanger everyone." He finished worriedly.

"It's going to be all right." Lucindae said, patting Jowan on the back.

"No it won't!" Jowan exclaimed, shoving her hand off. "They're going to destroy me!" Lucindae raised her arms in a calming fashion, trying to get Jowan to stop yelling. As she did this the heat in her hands intensified and she quickly lowered them again. "I won't put Lily through the pain of seeing me like that." Jowan said, quieting himself.

"What are you going to do?" Lucindae asked, not sure of what else to say.

"I need to escape." Jowan said bluntly. "I need to destroy my phylactery. Without it, they can't track me down." He looked Lucindae in the eye. "We need your help, Lily and I can't do this on our own."

"Give us your word that you will help and we will tell you what we intend." Lily said to Lucindae.

Lucindae sighed, looking at the young woman. "You have my word."

"Thank you." Lily said with relief. "We will never forget this."

"So what do you intend to do?" Lucindae asked urgently.

"I can get us into the repository." She said quickly. "But there is a problem. There are two locks on the phylactery chamber door. The First Enchanter and knight-commander each hold one key. But what it is just a door. There is power enough in this place to destroy all of Ferelden. What's a door to a mage?" As she asked this Lucindae couldn't help but feel that there was more to this simple door than what the other two thought.

"It can't be that easy." Lucindae replied.

"What if it is?" Jowan asked hopefully. "We have to try." He paused for a moment, then said, "I once saw a rod of fire melt through a lock." At the mention of fire Lucindae's hands warmed up just a little. "You could get one from the stockroom. But Owain doesn't release such things to apprentices."

"I'll go to the stockroom and retrieve this rod." Lucindae said, sighing.

"We should stay here." Lily said. "One mage at the stockroom will attract less attention than an mage, an apprentice, and an initiate." Lucindae nodded, the young woman had an excellent point. "Good luck." Lilly continued. "Our prayers go with you."

She went to the stockroom, where Owain was working dutifully. He looked up at her once he was done scrubbing a bit of the floor with his hollow eyes. "Welcome to the Circle's stockroom of magical items." He said, there was no level of emotion in his voice whatsoever. "My name is Owain. How may I assist you?"

She cleared her throat, saying, "I need a rod of fire."

"Rods of fire serve many purposes." Owain replied coldly. "Why do you wish to acquire this particular item?"

Lucindae looked around for a moment. Then she replied without thinking. "I need the rod for my research into…burning things." She smacked her face with embarrassment. That was a horrible lie. To her surprise Owain actually went into the stockroom and picked up a small wand, handing it to her.

"Please fill out the necessary paperwork once you are done with this item." He said as he pointed to a small podium with some parchment. Then he went back to his scrubbing. She looked at the rod of fire, her hands felt like they were burning up when she touched it. She sighed, wishing that she could cast fire at will without it blowing up in her face. She quickly proceeded back to the chantry where Jowan and Lily were waiting for her.

"I hate waiting." Jowan said quietly. "It makes me nervous."

"I have the rod of fire." Lucindae said, showing it to the two.

"That was quick!" Jowan exclaimed.

"To the repository then." Lily said happily. "Freedom awaits."

Lucindae followed Lily and Jowan as they walked down to the first floor, then to the basement. When they went down the stairs leading to the bottom floor Lucindae saw the basement for the first time. It was creepy, beyond any normal meaning of the word. Cobwebs were strung up everywhere and there was a sense of dread as the area was almost unnaturally dark.

The three walked up to a lone door that stood in their direct path to the repository. When they approached it Lily said, "The chantry calls this entrance 'The Victim's Door'. It is built of two hundred and seventy-seven planks, one for each original templar. It is a reminder of all the dangers those cursed with magic pose."

"But how do we get past is?" Lucindae asked.

"The door can only be opened by a templar and a mage, entering together." Lily replied. "The chantry provides the password, which primes the ward, and the mage touches it with mana, to release it."

"So what must I do?" Lucindae said, cocking her head to the side.

"First, the password…" Lily said, turning to face the door. "Sword of the Maker, Tears of the Fade." The three heard a sound come from the door, which made them jump.

"I heard something." Lucindae said, worried.

"The password only primes the door." Lily said knowingly. "Now it must feel the touch of mana. Any spell will do, but hurry."

Lucindae walked up to the door, trying to prepare an arcane bolt. But as soon as she raised her hands the same burning feeling in her palms came again. For some reason, as she did this the door unlocked. She raised an eyebrow but the other two quickly ran inside. Lucindae did the same and the door shut behind her on its own. The three found a door along with another path branching off to the right a few yards from the door they just came in from. "Do you have the rod with you?" Jowan asked excitedly. "Melt the locks off!"

She nodded at Jowan, raising the rod to the level of the locks on the door. She tried sending some magic through it but nothing happened. She noticed that around this door the burning in her hands was gone. "What's the matter?" Lily asked. "Why isn't it working?"

Lucindae didn't respond, trying to use the wand again. Still, nothing happened. "Lily…" Jowan said quietly. "Something's not right…I can't cast spells here. Nothing works!"

Lily leaned in closer to inspect the door, after a while she said, "These wards carved into the stone…this must be the templar's work…They negate any magic cast within this area." Lucindae couldn't help but agree, but what did that mean the burning in her hands was? "I should have guessed!" Lily said, sounding angry. "Why would Greagoir and Irving use simple keys for such a door? Because magical keys don't work." She sighed. "How do you keep mages away from something? Make their powers completely worthless! That's it then! We're finished! We can't get in."

Lucindae looked down the hall going to the right, seeing a door she said, "That door there, where does it lead?"

"I don't know." Lily responded. "Do you think it's another way in?"

"That door probably leads to another part of the repository. What are the chances of there being another entrance?" Jowan said as the anxiety in his voice kept building.

"It's worth a try." Lucindae stated.

"We can't get into the chamber the way we planned." Lily said, looking at the door. "But we're not about to give up. We can see where this door leads, but I don't think it'll be easy…it's probably locked for one."

"The rod will work on those locks, shouldn't it?" Lucindae asked, looking at the rod of fire.

"Yes." Lily replied. "Let's hope that door isn't warded as well."  
>"Let's hurry!" Jowan exclaimed. "We've wasted enough time."<p>

As the three approached the door Lucindae noticed the burning in her hands came back, stronger this time. When she got closer she noticed a suit of armor standing next to the door. She assumed it was there because they needed a place to store it. She got right in front of the door and the suit attacked, knocking Jowan and Lily away from Lucindae. Lucindae pulled out her staff and tried to cast a spell, but the suit knocked the staff away and kept coming towards her. Lucindae acted desperately and tried to push the suit away. She felt sudden warmth envelop her as she closed her eyes. The warmth continued as she slowly opened them. She found, to her amazement, that a cone of fire was shooting out of her hands. She also found that the burning in her hands was gone. Was this because she entered the Fade? She shook her head, remembering to breathe. Soon the fire left and the burning didn't return. All that was left of the suit was a pile of melted rubble.

Her two companions stood up, looking amazed. Lucindae shook her head and turned around, aiming the rod of fire at the lock on the door. She smiled as the rod sent forth an eruption of fire that blasted the lock, and some of the door, from existence. The door slid open slowly and the three continued onwards. They didn't run into any more opposition as they made it to the room where the phylacteries were being kept. This relieved Lucindae. She didn't know how many more times she could send forth fire for that day.

They eventually came to a room that was filled with slightly more sinister items. Lucindae shivered as a statue sat in the corner and appeared to be staring at them. The three searched the room for a few minutes, and then Lucindae found a part of the wall that appeared to be falling apart. It was blocked by a bookcase, which was being stared at by a strange dog-looking artifact. Jowan walked over, noticing the part of the wall as well, and said. "I think the phylactery chamber is on the other side of this wall."

"The wall looks weak in this spot." Lucindae pointed out.

"We should be able to find something that can knock the bricks loose." Jowan said happily.

"But the bookcase is in the way." Lucindae said, pointing at it.

"If we work together we can shift it." Jowan said, moving to the right side of the bookcase. "Come on!" He said after he got himself into position. Lucindae got next to him and began shoving with Jowan. After a bit of effort the two managed to move the bookcase to the side. Then there was the problem of getting past the wall.

Lucindae looked back at the dog statue, walking over to it. She felt as if there was magic coming from it. Jowan must have felt this as well because he walked over to it and said, "Use this with the rod. Maybe it'll break the wall open."

Lucindae placed the rod of fire on the statue's back and an incredible burst of flames came from the dog. It was so powerful it broke the wall open and left a pathway to the inside of the repository. The three walked into the phylactery chamber and immediately Lucindae began shivering. This room was unnaturally cold and damp. "We must find Jowan's phylactery quickly." Lily said as she ran into the room.

"Where would it be?" Lucindae asked.

"With the other apprentice phylacteries, I imagine." Lily stated.

"It shouldn't be hard to find." Jowan said as he walked up a small flight of stairs leading to a level where a number of phylacteries were. "There aren't many phylacteries here." Lucindae watched as Jowan picked up a single phylactery and smiled at it. "I can't believe this tiny vial stands between me and freedom." Jowan said as he smashed it onto the ground. "So fragile…so easy just to be rid of it…to end its hold over me…" He stared into the small pool of blood that came from the vial. Lucindae couldn't help but feel a little worried with the way Jowan spoke to it. "…and I am free."

"The sooner we're out of here, the better." Lucindae said, shivering.

"I do not want to stay here a moment longer." Lily agreed.

The three went to an exit that lay next to the area where the phylacteries were. Lucindae tried opening it and found that it wasn't locked. When the three went through it they realized it was the second door they had encountered on the way in. They had gone in a large circle. They quickly made their way up to the first floor of the tower. Ready to breath some fresh air. "We did it!" Jowan shouted. "I can't believe it!" He turned to Lucindae and hugged her. "Thank you…we could never have…"

"So what you said was true, Irving." Said Greagoir as he cut Jowan off. He had come from the room right next to the one they were in.

"This looks bad…" Lucindae said as Greagoir approached them.

"G-Greagoir…" Lily stuttered as the man had a glare on him that would frighten even a Darkspawn.

"An initiate, conspiring with a blood mage." Greagoir said with a condescending tone. "I'm disappointed Lily." Greagoir then leaned in to examine Lily. "She seems shocked, but fully in control of her own mind. Not a thrall of the blood mage then." He said to Irving, who had a look of sadness on his face that broke Lucindae's heart. "You were right Irving. The initiate has betrayed us. The chantry will not let this go unpunished." He looked at Lucindae next. "And this one," he said with scorn, "newly a mage, and already flouting the rules of the Circle."

Lucindae felt her eyes drawn to Irving who shook his head. "I'm disappointed in you. You could have told me what you knew of this plan, and you didn't." He said, his voice cracking with sorrow.

"You don't care for mages!" Jowan began shouting, accusing the First Enchanter and knight-commander. "You just bow to the chantry's every whim!"

Lucindae put her hand on Jowan's shoulder. "Jowan," she whispered, "please don't make it worse."

"Enough!" Greagoir shouted, and everything went silent. "As knight-commander of the templars here assembled. I sentence this blood mage to death." Lucindae and Lily gasped at this sentence. What proof did they have against Jowan? He looked at Lily, "And this initiate has scorned the chantry and her vows. Take her to Aeonar." The few templars in the room began walking towards the three, their hands on their swords.

"The…mages' prison?" Lily asked, horrified. "No…please, no, not there!"

"No!" Jowan shouted, pulling out a knife. "I won't let you touch her!" He stabbed his hand. Blood squirted out of it wildly, more than it should have. As the blood spilt onto the floor it began surrounding Jowan, swirling around wildly. The templars backed up, drawing their swords and getting ready to strike. Then Jowan sent forth a blast of red energy, infused with blood, at the men standing in front of him. They all flew backwards at least ten feet and lay on the ground, motionless. Jowan looked at Lily, his face covered in his own blood.

"By the Maker…" Lily said, too surprised to shout. "Blood magic! H-how could you? You said you never…" She couldn't complete her sentence.

"I admit…" Jowan began begging. "I dabbled! I thought it would make me a better mage!"

"Blood magic is evil, Jowan." Lily said, backing away from her lover. "It corrupts people…changes them…"

"I'm going to give it up!" Jowan said, falling to his knees. "All magic! I just want to be with you, Lily!" He got up and walked towards her, extending his hand. "Please…come with me…"

Lily smacked away his hand, saying, "I trusted you. I was ready to sacrifice everything for you…I…I don't know who you are, blood mage." She looked away from Jowan. "Stay away from me…"

Lucindae watched as Jowan ran off, the people he sent flying shifting about as they woke up. Lucindae quickly ran to Irving, helping him off his back. "Are you alright?" he asked the two women. "Where is Greagoir?"

Greagoir got up. Refusing the hand that Lucindae offered him. "I knew it…blood magic." He growled. "But to overcome so many…I never thought him capable of such power…"

"He lied to me!" Lucindae exclaimed, suddenly realizing everything that just happened to her.

"None of us expected this." Irving said as he straightened his back. "Are you alright, Greagoir?" He asked as he turned to the knight-commander.

"As good as can be expected given the circumstances!" Greagoir shouted. "If you had let me act sooner, this would not have happened!" He almost screamed, pointing at Irving. "Now we have a blood mage on the loose and no way to track him down!"

Lucindae fell to her knees, placing her face into the palms of her hands. "Jowan destroyed his phylactery…" She said, defeated.

"Where is the girl?" Greagoir asked, ignoring Lucindae.

"I…I am here, ser." Lily said, averting her gaze.

"You helped a blood mage!" Greagoir said, waving his hand around the damaged areas that Jowan made. "Look at all he's hurt!"

Lucindae stood up, defending the initiate. "Lily didn't know Jowan was a blood mage." She stated firmly.

"You've been a friend," Lily said, smiling at Lucindae, "but you needn't defend me any longer." Lily then looked directly at Greagoir. "Knight-commander…I…I was wrong. I was accomplice to a…blood mage. I will accept whatever punishment you see fit. Even…Aeonar."

"Get her out of my sight!" Greagoir commanded, two templars came to take Lily away. He looked at Lucindae. "And you, you know why the repository exists. Now look what you've done!"

"Did you take anything from the Circle, child?" Irving asked, looking at Lucindae.

Lucindae took out the rod of fire, giving it to Greagoir. "I took this from Owain. I can assure you he had no idea about what was going on."

"Some honest at last." Greagoir grunted, handing the rod to one of the templars. "Now we must decide a fitting punishment for you."

She looked at Greagoir, "I had no idea Jowan was a blood mage…"

"And you think that excuses you!" Greagoir exploded with blind rage. "You can't possibly believe that you're anywhere near innocent right now!" Lucindae averted her gaze from the furious templar. She knew that everything he had said was right. She felt that she deserved no mercy.

"That will be quite enough, Greagoir." Said a familiar voice. Lucindae looked up to see Duncan walk into the room. "I came here looking for more than mages for the king's army. I came here looking for possible Grey Wardens." He looked at Lucindae. "I believe you spoke highly of this young woman, Irving."

"Duncan, I understand the need for Grey Wardens, but she has assisted a maleficar." Irving said, turning to face Duncan.

"Nevertheless," the Warden started, "I could use her talents."

"No…" Lucindae said, "I should take whatever punishment I am given for my crime."

"At least not all of our teachings went to waste." Greagoir said. His look softened only slightly.

"It would be a waste of your talents." Duncan pointed out. "Talents that could be used to fight things far worse than blood mages."

"I won't let you take this mage away. She needs to be punished." Greagoir said, turning on the Grey Warden.

"Don't be a fool, Greagoir." Irving said to the knight-commander. "You know as well as I do that Duncan can invoke the Rite of Conscription. We're powerless to stop him."

Greagoir turned, growling while the First Enchanter and Grey Warden discussed what was to happen to Lucindae. Eventually they called Greagoir over and the conversation continued. After a few minutes the knight-commander broke away from the huddle and spoke to Lucindae. "It seems that your fate is to be determined by the Grey Warden. You are lucky I didn't kill you on the spot. Now get out of my sight."

Duncan went to Lucindae. "You are to come with me now, child."

She nodded, following Duncan out of the tower and onto lake Calenhad where a boat was waiting for them. The ferryman tipped his hat to the two and had them sit down in the boat. When they were halfway between the shoreline of a small town and the tower Lucindae asked, "Why did you pick me?"

The Grey Warden turned his gaze over to her, "You show great potential. I wouldn't have one mistake stop you from fighting off Darkspawn. Not while a blight is knocking at our door."

"So we will be going to Ostagar then?" Lucindae asked, wondering what the outside world was like.

Duncan shook his head, "No, not immediately. We have one last place to go to before we head off to battle."

"Where would that be?"  
>"I'll explain when we get to the tavern on the other side of the lake." Duncan said, staring into the water.<p>

Lucindae nodded, enjoying the peacefulness of the night as she looked around the outside. She was fascinated and also worried to see what it was like outside the circle. Once they made it to the dock Lucindae had to admit she was disappointed. The buildings were broken and old. They barely stood under their own weight. She followed Duncan as he went inside a building with a sign above the door. As she entered her nose was immediately assaulted by a multitude of horrible smells. There were only three people in the creaky old building other than Duncan. There was the barkeep, a human who seemed to be brooding over something, and a dwarf who was passed out on the ground with a black eye. Duncan looked at her and smiled, "Take some time to get acquainted before we move. I'll get a map and show everyone where we're going." After saying that he left and Lucindae decided to sit next to the human.

He looked her over and asked, "Are you Duncan's new recruit?"

She nodded, "That's correct, my name is Lucindae." There was a moment of silence. She then turned to face the dwarf who was passed out on the floor. "How did he hurt his eye?"

The human looked back at the dwarf and chuckled, "He didn't keep his mouth shut. I'm certain he learned a good lesson that day. My name's Darion, Darion Cousland the dwarf is Lax, you'll learn to ignore him later on. "

Lucindae sighed, realizing this was truly going to be an experience. A few minutes passed and Duncan walked in with a folded map. At this point the dwarf had managed to sober up enough to sit in a seat. Duncan pointed to an area on the map that was in the middle of a forest. "We'll be going here next. There is something that I need to investigate."

"Excellent!" Lax shouted as he fell off his chair. "We'll be meeting the forest dwarves in no time!"

Both Lucindae and Darion sighed. Duncan didn't seem to care about this and merely folded up the paper. Darion went over and hefted the dwarf to his feet. The two then began to follow Duncan as he left the tavern, the dwarf barely able to walk straight while the human guided him to the door. Lucindae followed, knowing less than the rest of them about the new world she was going to be a part in.


	4. Ranthelis Mahariel

Ranthelis Mahariel was hunting in the forest with his friend, Tamlen. The two had been stalking a deer for some time now that was just on the edge of the forest. Neither of them said a word, knowing that even the slightest mistake and the hunt would be ruined. Ranthelis and Tamlen both had their bows drawn, ready to slay the deer. But as they were about to release a loud noise interrupted their hunt. The deer sped off into the forest with amazing speed. Tamlen fired an arrow out of desperation, but he missed. Ranthelis, on the other hand, realized that it would be impossible to hit the deer as soon as it began running, so he lowered his bow. "What was that?" Tamlen asked, looking to Ranthelis.

Ranthelis shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know." He replied, drawing his two blades. The two nodded at each other and made a silent agreement to scout out what made the noise. Tamlen was the first to leave he was always ambitious. Ranthelis sighed, moving at a slower pace and keeping himself well hidden. When Ranthelis finally caught up to Tamlen he stayed behind a bush. He saw his friend aiming his bow at three unarmed humans who were panting heavily. Ranthelis observed the trail they made. They must have been running from something. They were lucky it wasn't a predator of some sort, because if it were the three humans wouldn't be breathing at this point.

"It's a Dalish!" Said one of the humans on the ground.

"And you three are somewhere you shouldn't be." Tamlen growled.

Ranthelis sighed. He knew how Tamlen felt about humans in general. If he didn't intervene soon his friend would end up killing three innocent humans. "Let us pass elf." One of the humans said bravely. "You have no right to stop us!" Ranthelis thought this was fairly interesting, considering how just a moment ago the very same human was running in blind terror.

"No?" Tamlen questioned. "We will see about that, won't we?" Ranthelis sighed, stepping out of the brush with his weapons at the ready. He may have known that the humans were defenseless, but it was always helpful to make sure they didn't try to kill with their bare hands. Though this seemed very unlikely to the elf.

Tamlen looked at Ranthelis and nodded, saying, "You're just in time. I found these…humans lurking in the bushes. Bandits, no doubt." As he said this he drew his bow to its maximum length, aiming it at the boldest of the three humans.

"We aren't bandits, I swear!" The human exclaimed. "Please, don't hurt us!"

"You shemlen are pathetic." Tamlen taunted. "It's hard to believe you ever drove us from our homeland." Ranthelis sighed, there were Tamlen's misconceptions about humans again. In truth, the humans could be very fierce some if driven to that point. It also helped if they had weapons and were trained. These humans just seemed like simple travelers.

"W-we've never done nothing to you Dalish!" The human said in defense. Ranthelis cringed at the bad grammar. "We didn't even know this forest was yours!"

"This forest isn't ours fools." Ranthelis nodded, this was just a part of the forest they were stopping in until it best suited them to be elsewhere. "You've stumbled too close to our camp. You shems are like vermin…we can't trust you not to make mischief." Tamlen glanced over to Ranthelis. "What do you say? What should we do with them?"

Ranthelis sheathed his weapons, "Let's find out what they're doing here." He said motioning for Tamlen to do the same.

Sadly, Tamlen didn't lower his bow. "Does it matter?" He asked. "Hunting or banditry, we'll need to move camp if we let them live."

Ranthelis looked over to his friend, "They're unarmed and harmless, Tamlen. I understand your feelings towards them, but I think you're being a bit ridiculous at this point."

"Oh, and what makes you say that?" Tamlen asked. "For all we know there could be a whole group of them hiding out somewhere else in the forest."

Ranthelis sighed, replying, "If we kill them and they **do** have friends, which seems highly unlikely, then their friends would come searching for them. Then where would we be if the previously stated friends came to our camp and tried to find them? And worse, what if their friends found out that we killed these men? You need to think about this a bit more, my friend." His friend lowered his bow a bit. Everything he had said to Tamlen was true. Ranthelis smiled, he had a small sense of pride knowing that he was a purely logical elf. He wasn't siding with the humans, or defending the humans' actions in the past, but he preferred to think of every possibility. He would have wound up dead hundreds of times if he didn't think like he did on an every day basis.

"L-look…we didn't come here to be trouble." Another of the humans said, backing away slowly. "We just found a cave…"

Ranthelis raised an eyebrow. The nearest cave wasn't in the direction the humans were running from. His first thought was that they were lying, but looking at their faces suggested otherwise. Ranthelis also prided himself on the fact that he could generally read other people to tell if they were lying or not. These humans seemed to be telling the truth. "Yes, a cave." Said the human in the middle. "With ruins like I've never seen! We thought there might be, uh…"

"Treasure?" Tamlen cut in. "So, you're more akin to common thieves than actual bandits."

Tamlen's eyes darted to Ranthelis, waiting for his response. But the other Dalish elf wasn't listening. He had taken off a bit of his pure white hair and began nibbling it. Ranthelis only did this when he was deep in though. This information troubled him. Ruins? But there wasn't supposed to be anything like that in this part of the forest. Unless it had been covered up by the vegetation so long ago. What did this all mean? He looked up after a moment, saying, "I'd like to see these ruins."

"So would I." Tamlen agreed. "I've never heard of ruins in these parts."

One of the humans stepped forward, "I…I have proof!" he exclaimed. "Here…" He handed Ranthelis a small object. "We found this just inside the entrance."

Ranthelis handed the object to Tamlen, partly because he wanted his friend to examine it, and partly because he wanted the elf to put away his bow. "This stone has carving…" Tamlen said as he examined the small object. "Is this elvish? **Written** elvish?"

The last statement made Ranthelis turn his head to his fellow hunter. Written elvish was something that was long lost. To find it here of all places meant that there was still some history to be salvaged. A history the elves desperately sought. "There's more in the ruins." The human said, relieved that the elf had put away his weapon. "We didn't get very far, though…" his voice drifted off.

Ranthelis raised an eyebrow, it must have been something very frightening to scare away three grown humans. Ranthelis observed the trail they made and decided it was something exceedingly frightening to humans. He ruled out the possibility of it being a small kitten. "Why not?" He asked curiously.

"There was a demon!" One of the humans exclaimed. That intrigued Ranthelis even more. "It was huge, with black eyes! Thank the maker we were able to out-run it!"

Ranthelis heard Tamlen sigh, "A demon?" He asked, not expecting an answer. "Where is this cave?" Ranthelis smiled, that was the first logical question his friend had asked all day.

"Just off the west, I think." The human in the middle said. "There's a cave in the rock-face, and a huge hole just inside."

Tamlen looked over to Ranthelis again, "Well? Do you trust them?" he asked. "Shall we let them go?"

Ranthelis nodded, "You've frightened them enough." He replied. "Trust me, they're not going to bother us."

"Run along then, shems." Tamlen said. "And don't come back until we Dalish have moved on."

The three humans began running desperately, "Of course!" one of them shouted. "Thank you! Thank you!"

Ranthelis smiled at his friend, "Now, that's what you get if you show a little mercy and don't try to kill anything that moves. They even thanked us."

"Bah, shems are shems." Tamlen said in response. "Shall we see if there's any truth to their story? These carvings make me curious."

Ranthelis took the small object from Tamlen. While his friend may have been curious, he was infinitely more. Tamlen was right on one thing. This was elvish writing. "I'm not sure…" Ranthelis finally said. "I have a bad feeling about this 'demon'." Ranthelis had heard stories about what a demon could do to people. While he was confident in his ability to fight he wasn't exactly willing to face something that lived beyond their realm.

"Skittish shems say it's a demon, and you believe them?" Tamlen asked, chuckling. "They probably woke up a bear."

"That doesn't help much." Ranthelis replied. He didn't want to kill something that could be avoided easily.

"Let's see if these ruins actually exist." Tamlen insisted. "Then we'll worry about what to do."

Ranthelis sighed he had been goaded into another adventure by his friend. The two followed the obvious trail the humans had made. They eventually made it to a part of the path where rocks were piled high. After following a natural trail in between the two walls they eventually made it to a few ruins that seemed to be holding the two walls back. While Tamlen was interested this worried Ranthelis. Why were they here? He wondered. As Tamlen went on without him he decided his friend would be of more use to him alive than dead. They eventually got to a point where the path went down into the rock face. "This must be the cave." Tamlen stated as he looked down. "I don't recall seeing this before, do you?"

"No," Ranthelis replied quietly. "And that worries me. We should be wary."

"Always the careful one." Tamlen sighed. "Fine, but I'm not running back until I know there's something worth making a fuss over." Tamlen looked down at the cave anxiously. "Come on, let's at least see what's there. How dangerous could it be?"

Ranthelis cringed at those words. He knew all too well how those words mean the death of several of their best hunters. As his friend eagerly went down into the cave Ranthelis hesitantly followed. The two eventually got to a point where ruins seemed to be holding up the cave. Tamlen was surprised, saying, "It…looks like the shems were telling the truth."

As he said this Ranthelis was carefully observing the ruins. They were definitely not of evlish make. "These ruins look more human than elven." He stated, chipping off a bit of the wall. This was by far the most intriguing thing Ranthelis had come across his entire life. He already had another strand of white hair in his mouth as he chewed it. He shook his head when he realized that his friend was going deeper into the cavern.

As the two continues on they noticed webs, large webs. There was also a cocoon. It was large enough for a man to fit in, and judging from the arm sticking out of it, there was. Ranthelis made it a point not to touch it as they continued cautiously. He looked around for signs of the giant spiders. They usually traveled in packs of three or more. The made it to a platform and all of a sudden there was a loud hissing. But the hissing wasn't that of a snake, Ranthelis realized, as three very large spiders slid down from the ceiling. Tamlen managed to kill one before it hit the ground with his bow, but the other two began attacking ferociously. Ranthelis drew his knives, one of the spiders swung at him with a large mandible. The elf quickly deflected in, using the creatures weight against it. This strategy seemed to work since the spider fell on its back and began struggling to get up. Ranthelis quickly killed it by stabbing its head with the knife. The other spider bit at Ranthelis, but it fell to the ground dead as the elf shoved his knife into its mouth and twisted.

"See?" Tamlen said. "These must have been the demons the shems were talking about."

"Yeah…" Ranthelis said quietly, but for some reason he felt there was more to this than what they could see. The hunters opened a door at the end of the room, going through it and following a path through the ruins. For some reason Ranthelis felt as if he was being watched. While the elves didn't find any more spiders as they went on they did find several bodies lying around. Ranthelis noticed that spiders didn't kill them all. That truly disturbed him.

Ranthelis felt Tamlen nudge him while he was observing the bodies. "I can't believe this." He said, pointing to a statue. "You recognize this statue don't you?"

Ranthelis looked at the statue, interested. It was a woman with wings and a spear; he couldn't make out the face though. "It's worn, but it looks vaguely familiar…" He said, looking the statue over.

"Back when our people lived in Arlathan, statues like these honored the creators." Tamlen said, giving a brief history lesson. "When the shems enslaved us, much of that lore was lost."

Ranthelis went back to observing the statue. "This looks like human architecture…" He said.

"With a statue of our people?" Tamlen asked. "Can these ruins date back to the time of Arlathan?"

Ranthelis thought he heard something shifting in the darkness, "This isn't the time or place for a history lesson, Tamlen." He said, standing up.

"I suppose you're right." Tamlen said, disappointed. "Still, the possibility is thrilling!"

The two turned around. Tamlen saw the door before Ranthelis did, and as Tamlen went to open it a trap was triggered. Ranthelis saw the pressure plate before his partner so he knew what was coming, but didn't get the opportunity to warn Tamlen. Acting quickly he pulled is partner out of the way of a green gas that came pouring out of a section of the wall. It quickly dissipated but Ranthelis noticed the two corpses moving around. The monsters stood up, one with a bow and arrow the other with a sword and shield. They began attacking the two hunters. Ranthelis dodged an attack by the skeleton holding the sword, kicking it in the chest shortly after. From his understanding of the undead Ranthelis knew that simply stabbing the skeleton wouldn't be enough, so he went to beating the skeleton with the flats of his blades. Eventually the skeleton fell to the ground, never to arise again. He looked back and saw Tamlen beating back the skeleton with the bow and eventually killing it a second time. "We're those undead?" He asked. "This place is haunted."

Ranthelis kept his knives out, looking around. He tried to open the door that Tamlen was going for. When it slid open he found a bear sitting down on the ground. After closer inspection the two hunters found that it wasn't just a bear, but one that looked as if it had been affected by the blight. As thorns and spikes stuck out of its back it looked as if the rest of its body was infected with some disease. It immediately charged them. Tamlen fired an arrow, hitting it in the eye. That only succeeded in making it mad. Ranthelis shoved Tamlen out of the way as the bear attacked the two of them. The bear swung a huge claw at Ranthelis, who ducked, slicing the bear between the ribs. As blood and puss poured out the bear roared with rage and pain. Slicing at the Ranthelis again and again. Somehow the elf managed to dodge every attack, just barely. This bear had heightened abilities, Ranthelis noted. He felt his back hit the wall, realizing he could dodge in time he wrote himself off to his fate. Suddenly the bear roared again, turning around. Ranthelis could see an arrow sticking out of the bear's back. He noticed Tamlen loading another arrow and aiming. Before the bear could charge again Ranthelis leaped onto the creatures back and began stabbing it repeatedly at the base of the skull. After a bit of struggling the bear fell to the ground with a loud thud.

"By the creators!" Tamlen shouted as he sat down. "What…what was that thing?"

Ranthelis took another look at the bear, "It looks like you were correct in your assumption about the humans disturbing a bear." He said jokingly.

"That's not funny!" Tamlen shouted as he wiped sweat from his brow.

"On the contrary, I find it hilarious." Ranthelis chuckled. To be honest, he was terrified at the bear. But Ranthelis needed to show that he wasn't afraid, otherwise his friend would panic and run off. The two suddenly got the feeling that they weren't alone in the room. Ranthelis' gaze turned cold as he looked around the room. All he could see was a mirror with two statues standing guard around it. As the two looked at the mirror Ranthelis couldn't help but get a feeling of dread emanating from the mirror. He noticed Tamlen walking up to touch it. Ranthelis began running, trying to stop his friend.

When Ranthelis grabbed Tamlen's shoulder Tamlen said, "It's beautiful isn't it? I wonder what the writing says."

"Stand back." Ranthelis said sternly. "We can't be sure it's safe."

"It sat here for who know how many centuries…" Tamlen started, almost trying to move forward to the mirror. "What could be so dangerous? Don't worry, I won't break it." He turned and began walking up the steps, Ranthelis desperately trying to stop him. "I wonder what this writing is for? Maybe this isn't…hey did you see that? I think something moved inside the mirror."

"Get away from it, Tamlen…" Ranthelis said, grabbing his friend's shoulder again.

Tamlen shrugged Ranthelis' hand off. "Hold on, I just want to know what it is." He said sharply. "Don't you see it? There it is again!" This time Ranthelis did notice a ripple in the mirror, but that didn't comfort him at all. "Can you feel that?" Tamlen continued. "I think it know we're here. I just need to take a closer look…" Tamlen was almost directly at the mirror's surface now. "It's…showing me places." The elf said as his hand went closer and closer to the reflective surface of the mirror. When he touched it part of the mirror went red. "I can see…some kind of city…underground?" Ranthelis tried to pry his friend's hands off of the mirror but Tamlen kept talking while his hand lay on the surface of it. "And…there's a gread blackness…" Suddenly Ranthelis heard various noises, much like grunts but inhuman, coming from the mirror. "It…it saw me!" Tamlen exclaimed. "Help! I can't look away!"

The mirror flashed brightly, shooting Tamlen with energy and sending both him and Ranthelis back a few feet. While Ranthelis managed to keep his balance and stay standing his friend hit the floor, hard. Suddenly everything went dark for both the elves as Ranthelis felt himself pass into unconsciousness.

Ranthelis opened his eyes, everything was woozy, but he felt the wind on his face. Was he dead? No, if he were dead he wouldn't feel extreme pain now. Where was he? His vision focused and he noticed he lay between two rock faces held up by ruins. He heard a voice, "Can you hear me?" it asked. "I am…very sorry." Ranthelis' sight cleared up and he saw a fairly old man standing over him with a look of concern on his face. He tried to sit up but the pain was unbearable and the elf ended up passing out again.

Ranthelis' eyes opened once again, this time he was back at the dalish camp. He recognized the scents and sounds of the area. He sat up, rubbing his head. He saw Fenarel standing at a nearby rock, but no signs of Tamlen. Ranthelis walked over to his friend. "You're awake!" Fenarel exclaimed. "You've the god's own luck, lethallin. You're back at camp. Everyone is worried sick about you. How do you feel?"

Instantly Ranthelis' mind began thinking again. "How did I get here, Fenarel?" he asked, looking around.

"A shem brought you back two day ago." Fenarel said, confused. "You don't remember him?"

Ranthelis' eyes widened, "I've been here for two days?" He exclaimed.

Fenarel nodded, "He was a Grey Warden and appeared out of nowhere with you slung over his shoulder. You were delirious with fever. He said that he found you outside a cave in the forest, unconscious and alone. He left you here and ran off again. The keeper's been using the old magic to heal you."

"Is anyone looking for Tamlen?" Ranthelis asked, realizing that his friend was still lost in the forest.

"Of course!" Fenarel exclaimed. "Most of the hunters are off looking for him right now. But the keeper wanted to talk to you as soon as you awoke. Stay here—I'll get her." After that Fenarel walked off to get the keeper.

A few minutes later he returned with an elderly elf with hair just as white as Ranthelis', she walked up to him and said, "I see you are awake, d'alen. It is fortunate Duncan found you when he did…I know not what dark power held you, but it nearly bled the life from you. It was difficult even for my magic to keep you alive."

"What happened to us?" Ranthelis asked.

"I know only that the Grey Warden found you in front of a strange cave, sick and alone." The keeper said, sighing. "Duncan thought there may have been Darkspawn creatures inside the cave. Is that true?"

Ranthelis searched his memory, trying to find the answers. He began chewing on a piece of his hair again. But only one memory came to mind. "All I remember was the mirror…" he said as he drifted off.

"A mirror?" The keeper asked. "And it caused all this? I have never heard of such a thing in all the lore we have collected." She sighed. "I was hoping for answers when you woke, but there are only more questions. And Tamlen remains missing. He is more important than any lore in these ruins. If he is as sick as you were, his condition is grave. Duncan returned to the cave to search for Darkspawn, but we cannot rely on him to look for Tamlen as well. We must go ourselves, and quickly. Do you feel well enough to show us the way, d'alen? Without you we will not find it."

Ranthelis nodded, "I am up to it, keeper. I'm fine."

"I am relieved to here it." She said, hopeful. "I am ordering the clan to pack the camp so we can go north. Take Merrill with you to the cave. Find Tamlen if you can, but do it swiftly."

"Why do you want me to take Merrill?" Ranthelis asked.

"Merrill knows a degree of my magic." The keeper replied. "Tamlen's chances of surviving the journey back are greater with her help. I also wish for Merrill to see this cave and mirror. She has a sense for these things, and could shed light on the nature of this illness."

"Take Merrill to the cave and find Tamlen. I understand." Ranthelis eventually replied. He was hesitant to go back to the cave, but he needed to know where Tamlen was.

"Go quickly." The keeper stated. "Tamlen's life hangs in the balance."

Ranthelis nodded, "Pray for me, keeper." He stated. He turned around and quickly proceeded to Merril, who was at a cart by the edge of camp.

She looked at him, and said, "The keeper told me I am to accompany you back to those caves. As her apprentice, I may see something you missed. But our main objective is to find Tamlen, of course. We must make haste; he may not have much time."

"Let's heat out now." Ranthelis stated anxiously.

"Then let us make haste while daylight lasts." She replied. Ranthelis nodded and took her to the area where they found the caves.

Eventually the two made it to the area where the two hunters had found the humans. After walking along the path they saw two short creatures standing still and growling. They looked hideous and distorted. It made Ranthelis sick just to look at them. Suddenly one of them pulled out a sword and charged. It swung a clumsy swing at Ranthelis, who stabbed it in the gut. The creature screamed and looked directly at Ranthelis. The elf quickly sliced its head off with one clean swipe, not wanting to look at the creature any longer. He noticed Merrill kill off the other one with a spell. She walked up to him. "What were those things?" She asked, surprised. "Were those Darkspawn?"

"That would make sense…" Ranthelis said as he bent over to observe the creatures.

"I've never seen anything like them!" Merrill said, disgusted. "You can smell the evil on them!"

"I smell a lot more than just evil." Ranthelis said, covering his nose as flies came by.

"Where did they come from?" She asked. "Were they here before?"  
>"I think I would have noticed." Ranthelis replied as he stood up, brushing his hands on his pants.<p>

"Let's move on and hope we don't meet any more of these monsters." Merrill said. "Before we go, are you alright? Were you hurt during the fight?" She asked, looking over Ranthelis.

Ranthelis shook his head, "I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"It's just that you're…quite pale." Merrill said, worried. "You look a bit feverish, in fact."

"What are you implying?" Ranthelis asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing…Forget I said anything…let's go." She said, sighing.

Ranthelis nodded, continuing on the path to the cave. When they reached the entrance Ranthelis finally noticed something odd. The forest was too quiet, the only noise came from the Darkspawn they had fought. Not even the birds were chirping. Ranthelis didn't like that. But even more so, there was something in the air. Something…unnatural. "Careful, I don't like this." Ranthelis warned Merrill.

"It seems whatever you woke up inside that cave has spread…outside." Merrill said nervously. "The sooner we find Tamlen, the sooner we can leave, let's go."

Ranthelis nodded, going down into the dark caverns once again. In the caverns Ranthelis shivered. It felt colder than normal down there. He quickly took Merrill to the room where he found the mirror. When he opened the door he saw the room filled with Darkspawn bodies as well as the old man who had saved him. The mirror stood in the center. Its surface was bright scarlet. The man turned to face the two elves. "So you were the one fighting the Darkspawn. I thought I heard combat outside." He said, eying Ranthelis. "You're the one I found wandering the forest, aren't you? I'm surprise you have recovered."

"If you heard fighting, why didn't you help?" Ranthelis asked.

"I would have, had I not been battling them myself." The man said, pointing to all the bodies. "Not all the kills here were yours, as you can see. My name is Duncan, and it's a pleasure to finally meet you. The last time we spoke you were barely conscious."

Merrill nodded, greeting Duncan in the elven tongue. "Andara Antish'an, Duncan of the Wardens. I am Merrill, the keeper's apprentice."

"Your keeper did not send you after me, did she?" Duncan asked. "I told her I would be in no danger." Ranthelis almost laughed as he looked over the Darkspawn bodies…almost.

"We're looking for our brother Tamlen." Ranthelis said.

"So you and your friend Tamlen both entered this cave?" Duncan asked. "And you saw the mirror?"

"Yes." Ranthelis nodded. "Tamlen touched the mirror and I blacked out."

"I see…"Duncan said, sighing. "That is unfortunate. The Grey Wardens have seen artifacts like this mirror before; it is Tevinter in origin, used for communication. Over time some of them simply…break. They become filled with the same taint as the Darkspawn. Tamlen's touch must have released it…It's what made you sick. And Tamlen, too, I presume."

Ranthelis looked at the mirror again. He looked back at Duncan and said, "Then we should destroy it."

"I agree." Duncan replied. "So long as the mirror exists, it is a threat to anyone nearby."

"I do not fear this sickness." Merrill interrupted. "The keeper knows how to cure it."

"She may have weakened it," Duncan said, "but she cannot cure it. Your recover is only temporary." He said, looking at Ranthelis. "I can sense the sickness in you, and it is spreading. Look inside yourself, and you will see."

Ranthelis sighed, feeling a little woozy as his fever began to slowly come back. "Then what should I do?" he asked, looking up at the man.

"First, we deal with the mirror." Duncan said, looking back at the device. "It is a pestilence, and a threat." Duncan then began walking up to it, taking his sword off his back and smashing it. The same brilliant white light that Ranthelis had seen before flashed about the room. Ranthelis and Duncan quickly covered their eyes. After a few moments passed Duncan walked up to Ranthelis. "It is done." He said, sighing with relief. "Now let's leave this cursed place. I must speak with the keeper immediately regarding your cure."

Ranthelis nodded, knowing that Tamlen wasn't here. It almost felt like Tamlen had never been there to begin with. "I agree," he said, "let's leave."

"I sense no other Darkspawn nearby." Duncan said, looking around. "So it's safe, lead on." Ranthelis nodded, leading both Merrill and Duncan back to the Dalish camp.

When they made it back to camp the keeper was waiting for them. She walked up to Ranthelis and said, "I'm relieve you have returned. And I did not expect to see you again so soon, Duncan."

"I was not expecting to return so soon either, keeper." Duncan replied.

The keeper turned her gaze onto Ranthelis. "Dare I ask of Tamlen?" She asked. "What did you find of him?"

Ranthelis sighed, looking up at the keeper. "If he was alive," he started, "the Darkspawn would have killed him."

"There…there were Darkspawn in the cave?" She asked, surprised.

"There is much to discuss, keeper." Duncan said bluntly. "I have learned a great deal since I was last here."

"Let us speak privately within my aravel then, Duncan." The keeper said, rubbing her temples. "Merrill, warn the hunters. If Darkspawn are about, I want the clan prepared."

Merrill nodded, "Right away." She said as she walked off.

"Da'len, allow me some time to speak with Duncan." The keeper said, looking back at Ranthelis. "Seek us out at my aravel later, and we can discuss your cure."

Ranthelis nodded. "Very well, keeper."

"Tell Hahren Paivel what has occurred." She said, sighing. "He now has the sad task of preparing a service for the dead." She turned her gaze to Duncan. "Follow me, Duncan. I am eager to hear what you have to say.

Ranthelis sighed, going over to where Paivel was. He found him by the campfire. "So you return with the Grey Warden, but without Tamlen." He said, disappointed. "What happened, da'len? Is he truly lost to us?"

Ranthelis sighed, "The Grey Warden says he is, but I'm not sure."

"Even if he is not, we must leave soon." Paivel said, sighing. "To think I'd live to see this…It seems the will of the creators that I sing the dirge for those I held in my arms as babes. I think I know why our immortal ancestors would sleep." He walked over to the fire, giving a long prayer for the dead. Ranthelis closed his eyes as the elf recited the ancient words. He almost felt a tear come to his eye at the loss of his friend.

He opened his eyes once Paivel approached him. "The keeper wants me to tell you to prepare a service." Ranthelis said.

"Of course." Paivel replied. "We've no body to return to the soil, but we shall still sing for Tamlen. The creators must come to guide him to the Beyond. Tell the keeper it shall be done before the clan is ready to move on."

"Thank you, Hahren…" Ranthelis said.

"Hmm, you know, it is imperative now more than ever to pass on what we know to the young." Paivel said, looking at a group of elvish children playing a game. "Let us tell these children of the fall of the Dales. You can honor me by sharing in the telling."

Ranthelis sighed. He didn't want any more depression on this day. He turned to Paivel and said, "I have important things to do."

"That is too bad." Paivel said. "Another time, then."

Ranthelis quickly turned and hurried to the Keeper's aravel. Duncan turned to him as he approached and said, "Your keeper and I have spoken, and we've come to an arrangement that concerns you." Why didn't Ranthelis like the sound of that? "My order is in need of help. You are in need of a cure. When I leave, I hope you will join me. You would make an excellent Grey Warden."

Ranthelis began chewing on a bit of his hair again. He began thinking about the pros and cons of this situation. On one hand, he would get the cure, he assumed. On the other hand, he would leave his clan forever. He had to choose between death, or solitude. He looked up at the Warden and asked. "What does this have to do with my cure?"

"Everything, I'm afraid." Duncan replied. Oh great, that sounded bad. "The Darkspawn taint courses through your veins. That you recovered at all is remarkable. But eventually, the taint will sicken and kill you, or worse." Ranthelis didn't like the idea of an "Or worse" variable. "The Grey Wardens can prevent that, but it means joining us."

Ranthelis shrugged his shoulders, "Then I'll join you." He said bluntly.

"I welcome you to the order." Duncan said as he bowed. "It is rare to have a Dalish amongst us, but they have always served with distinction."

"I know you'll do your clan proud, da'len." The keeper said, giving a small smile. "Take this ring. It is your heritage and will protect you against the darkness to come." She handed him a small ring the Ranthelis knew had some power in it.

"A valuable gift." Duncan stated. "So…are you ready to go?"

Ranthelis looked back at his clan, then to the keeper. He nodded after a little while, "Yes."

"Then let us be off. We have much ground to cover." Duncan said, picking up a pack off of the ground.

"Come then, da'len." The keeper said. "Before the creators guide you from us, let your clan embrace you one last time." She took Ranthelis by the arm and guided him to a group of his clan members who had formed two lines. As he walked past them they filled the gap behind him. He could have sworn he heard one of the elves singing an ancient song. He saw Merrill looking down at the ground, smiling he patted her shoulder gently. She gave a weak smile back as he walked up the path. Duncan was standing at the top. Ranthelis looked back at his clan and sighed, deciding it would be best if he didn't look back again.

"Where are we going?" Ranthelis asked, looking up at Duncan.

"We will be going to Ostagar to fight the Darkspawn horde." He replied. "After we get the other recruits. They've set up camp not to far from here."

The two walked for a little while. Soon they found a small campfire burning with three people sitting around it. Ranthelis immediately began analyzing his new companions. One was a human who seemed to be almost brooding. He was definitely bottling up some serious emotions. Most likely he went through a tragic loss. The other was a pretty mage who was busy reading a book. She seemed nervous. Ranthelis assumed this was the first time she had seen anything from the outside world. He then looked at the dwarf who was drunk and passed out on the ground. Ranthelis shrugged, that was normal for a dwarf. Which suggested not real tragic back-story. Duncan woke the dwarf who shook his head, "Huh, wuzzat? Are we done here?"

Duncan nodded, "Yes, Lax, we're done. We'll be moving out to Ostagar soon."

"About damn time!" The dwarf yelled happily. "I've got some pent up aggression and I need something to take it out on!"

"I agree." The human said, nodding at Duncan. "How long until we get there?"

"It should be at least three days, Darion." Duncan replied.

"Who is that?" The mage asked, eyeing the elf and looking away. She seemed like she was afraid she'd offend Ranthelis. "I thought you were just here to take care of some mirror."

"This, Lucindae, is Ranthelis. Right now he's the only one of you who has experience fighting the Darkspawn. I believe he's a valuable asset to the team."

Ranthelis nodded at the group, the dwarf waved his arm at the elf as he sat up. The human nodded and the mage looked away, embarrassed. The three quickly packed up whatever belongings they had and began moving on the open road. Ranthelis looked behind one last time, realizing that he just left behind his entire life. He smiled, there was nothing holding him back now.


	5. The Joining

"Welcome to Ostagar." Duncan said with a slight flare. The party looked around the area with some amount of wonderment. It was truly a beautiful sight. The castle and tower itself were immense and ornate, yet very sturdy and stable. None of them had ever seen a sight truly like this.

The group saw a small amount of smoke coming from a bonfire over the ridge and began heading in that direction, assuming that it was the camp. As they continued onward a man in gold colored armor stopped them. His hair was the same color as the armor he war and it spread down to his shoulders. He seemed young, and he carried an ambitious air with him. He smiled at the group, looking to Duncan. "Ho there, Duncan!"

Duncan was a little taken aback by this man's appearance. "King Cailan? I didn't expect-."

Both Lucindae and Darion gasped and bowed at Cailan's name, but Lax and Ranthelis didn't know what to do. The two just looked at each other in a confused manner. "A royal welcome?" The king asked, a little smugly. "I was beginning to think you'd miss all the fun!"

"Not if I could help it, your majesty." Duncan replied with a slight grin.

"Then I'll have the mighty Duncan by my side in battle after all!" Cailan exclaimed with much gusto. "Glorious! The other Wardens told me you've found some promising recruits. I take it that your company are those same people?"

"Allow me to introduce you, Majesty." Duncan said, nodding.

Ranthelis was unsure on how to deal with this situation. He wasn't expecting to meet royalty. He could tell that none of the group he was in, except for Darion, knew how to hold themselves either. Darion stepped forward, gripping Cailan's hand firmly. "No need, Duncan." Cailan replied, shaking Darion's hand. "You are Bryce's youngest, Darion, are you not? I don't think we've ever actually met."

Darion took a step back, looking down at the ground solemnly. "Yes, I am." He said. "And I bring important news."

"Is it about your father?" Cailan asked, curious. "Your brother has been concerned about him."

Darion didn't say anything else. He seemed too depressed to answer. Ranthelis noticed this easily, and he could tell that Lucindae had an idea as to what was going on. Of course Lax was completely oblivious to everything around him and seemed to still be adjusting to the fact that there was actually sky over their heads other than rock. After a few moments Darion looked up, tears in his eyes. "He's…not coming. He died when…when our castle was taken."

"Dead?" Calain asked, more surprised than anything. "What do you mean? Duncan, do you know anything about this?"

Duncan nodded, stepping forward. "Teryn Cousland and his wife are dead, your majesty." The Grey Warden replied, seeing that Darion couldn't say anything else. Ranthelis' eyes darted to the rest of the group to see what their reactions were. Lax seemed surprised and Lucindae seemed truly sorry for the young man. Even Ranthelis had to admit that he felt bad for the warrior. He also wondered why he never mentioned this to the others, or why Duncan didn't mention it either. "Arl Howe has shown himself a traitor, and overtaken Highever Castle." Duncan finished slowly, letting it ease in as Cailan turned from the group for a moment. "Had we not escaped he would have killed us, and told you any story he wished." Duncan sighed, looking to Darion who looked about ready to crack.

Cailan turned around, a look of enragement on his face. "I…can scarcely believe it!" The king nearly shouted. "How could he think he could get away with such treachery?" He asked turning around to face the group. "As soon as we are done here, I will turn my army north and bring Howe to justice. You have my word."

The rest of the party, even Lax, noticed that Darion was almost pleased by this. "Thank you, your majesty." Darion said, regaining his composure.

"No doubt you wish to see your brother." Cailan said, understanding in his voice. "Unfortunately, he and his men are scouting in the wilds."

"When will he return?" Darion asked, hope rising in his chest.

"Not until the battle is over, I fear." Cailan said, sighing. "Until then, we cannot send word. I apologize, but there is nothing more I can do." The king said, putting his hand on Darion's shoulder when the warrior looked down at the ground again. "All I can suggest is that you vent your grief against the Darkspawn for the time being."

"What would you know about my grief?" Darion said, almost glaring up at the king.

"Your majesty…" Duncan said, looking towards Darion. For some odd reason, that look put a small bit of shame into the warrior's heart. "I apologize…"

"Don't worry Duncan." Cailan replied, stepping back from Darion. "You must both be eager to reach your tents. Have you any news before I go?"

"Your uncle sends his greetings, and reminds you that Redcliffe forces could be here in less than a week." Duncan replied, tearing his gaze away from Darion.

"Ha!" Cailan laughed, turning away from the warrior. "Eamon just wants in on the glory. We've won three battles against these monsters, and tomorrow will be no different."

"You sound very confident of that." Ranthelis pointed out. Noticing how eager the king looked.

"Over-confident some would say, right Duncan?" Cailan chuckled.

"Your majesty, I'm not certain the blight can be ended quite as…quickly as you might wish." Duncan said hesitantly.

"I'm not even sure if this is a true blight." Cailan said, a small amount of disappointment in his voice. "There are plenty of Darkspawn out in the field, but alas, we've seen no sign of an archdemon."

"Disappointed your majesty?" Duncan asked before Ranthelis had the chance to.

"I'd hoped for a war like in the tales!" The king explained, turning to Duncan once again. "A king riding with the fabled Grey Wardens against a tainted god!" He sighed, looking down at the ground. "But I suppose this will have to do. Now, I must go before Loghain send out a search party. Farewell, Grey Wardens."

As the king turned and left Darion, Lucindae, and Duncan gave a quick salute, while Ranthelis and Lax merely raised their eyebrows. Duncan turned to face the entire party once Cailan was out of earshot. "What the king said is true." He said with some hesitance. "They've won several battles against the Darkspawn here."

"Yet you don't sound very reassured." Ranthelis pointed out, noticing the tension in his voice.

Duncan indicated for the group to follow. "Despite the victories so far, the Darkspawn horde grows larger with each passing day." Duncan explained as they walked towards a bridge. "By now, they look to outnumber us." As they reached the bridge the group gasped at the view. Even Darion's Mabari seemed impressed. They could see a very large forest along with a great field strewn with Darkspawn and human corpses. "I know there is an archdemon behind this." Duncan continued. "But I cannot ask the king to act solely on my feeling."

"Then maybe we should move quickly." Lax said, pointing out the obvious.

"Yes." Duncan said, nodding. "We should proceed with the ritual."

"What do you mean?" Lax asked suddenly. None of the group had heard anything about a ritual before this. "What ritual?"

"Every recruit must go through a secret ritual we call the joining in order to become a Grey Warden." Duncan explained. "The ritual is brief, but some preparation is required. We must begin soon."

"Wonderful." Lax commented with a grunt. "Let's get this over with, then."

Duncan nodded. "Feel free to explore the camp here as you wish." Duncan said as they began walking across the bridge. "All I ask is that you do not leave it for the time being. There is another Grey Warden in the camp by the name of Alistair. When you are ready, seek him out and tell him it's time to summon the other recruits." He looked towards Darion and the Mabari trailing closely behind him. "Your hound can stay with me while I attend to some business."

It was then that Darion's hound let out a happy bark. "The Grey Warden tent is on the other side of this bridge." Duncan continued. "You will find us there, should you need to." After he said this, Duncan walked off without saying another word to the four Wardens-to-be.

"Well what the hell do we do now?" Lax asked, getting bored with the view of the bridge.

"Simple." Ranthelis replied, patting the dwarf on the head. "We go find this Alistair person and get this over with."

The dwarf grumbled and smacked the elf's hand away. "Don't do that, I don't want yer beardless kind touching me."

As Ranthelis shrugged he heard Lucindae ask, "Wait, we're not going to look around the camp first?"

"I'd prefer not to waste time here if we don't need to. I'm not eager to fight the Darkspawn again, but I feel it's better to get as prepared as possible as soon as possible.

"Who put you in charge, Ranthelis?" Darion asked the elf, raising an eyebrow.

"No on really." Ranthelis replied. "I'm just giving some helpful suggestions. I don't particularly care for positions of leadership. The responsibility isn't for me really. But, if I were to make a suggestion, I'd say that you would make a fine leader of men for our little group."

"And what makes you say that?" Darion asked.

"Simple really." Ranthelis replied casually. "You're the most experienced one out of all of us, when it comes to leading people. After all, you were in a position of authority before you met with Duncan. So, naturally, you're the perfect choice."

The rest of the party nodded in agreement and Darion sighed. "Fine, if you insist. But keep in mind that I'm not going to give any of you special treatment."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Ranthelis said, smiling. "But if I were to make another helpful suggestion, I'd say that we should get to finding this Alistair person. I doubt he'd want to be kept waiting."

Darion rubbed his temples. "Alright, alright. We'll look for Alistair. I'm certain Duncan wants this done as quickly as you do, Ranthelis."

Ranthelis shrugged his shoulders. "I just try to move things along when necessary."

The party quickly crossed the bridge, heading towards the camp. Once they entered they saw a number of soldiers sharpening their weapons or praying. It was truly a diverse group of troops as well. It was as if all of Ferelden had thrown itself together into one large stewing pot. "Right, so how do we find this Alistair guy?" Lax asked, looking around the camp.

"That's the first smart statement I've heard from you yet, Lax." Ranthelis commented, chuckling.

Lax began grumbling something about knife-ears while Darion began looking around the area as well. "I'd suggest we split up." He finally said. "We split into two groups. Lucindae and me will check the northern section while Ranthelis and Lax search the southern areas."

"Hold it!" Lax grunted, breaking from his trance. "Why do I have to get stuck with the damned knife-ear?"

"Because it saves me from your rambling." Darion replied.

"Bah, I'd much rather go with Lucindae." Lax grunted, a put coming to his face.

Ranthelis sighed, casually grabbing the dwarf by the neck and dragging him out of Darion's sight. "We'll meet back at Duncan's tent if we find anything. Be sure you come and retrieve us if we get lost." The elf called to Darion, all the while Lax was kicking and yelling.

Once they were out of earshot Darion began rubbing his eyes in a frustrated manner. "I swear this mission is going to kill me…" He grumbled.

Lucindae began giggling at the sight of the dwarf and the elf. Once she calmed down a little she turned to Darion. "Why did you choose me over Lax and Ranthelis?"

Darion shrugged his shoulders, letting his arms drop to his sides. "So far you're the only one who hasn't started driving me crazy. And I don't want that dwarf out on his own otherwise we could all end up dead." He turned and began walking in the opposite direction of his other two companions. "Let's go, I want to get as far away from them as possible."

"Right." Lucindae said, nodding as she followed Darion. As the two passed a group of tents they saw a number of mages preparing themselves for the oncoming battle. Lucindae almost shuddered when they felt the gaze of a templar.

"What's bothering you?" Darion asked, noticing Lucindae's nervousness but not bothering to stop.

"I'm sorry, when I left the circle of magi I left on some…unfavorable terms." Lucindae said shyly. "I'm just worried that one of the templars here will think I'm an apostate."

"Just calm down." Darion said, stopping and turning around once they were out of the templar's gaze. "You're a Grey Warden now. I doubt they're going to come after you because of your magical abilities."

"I know…" Lucindae said, drifting off. "It's just difficult to get used to is all."

"I'd suggest not thinking about it." He said calmly. "They can't do anything to you." Once he saw the young woman nod he turned around again and began walking. "Now let's hurry, I want to find Alistair before the others do."

Lucindae nodded and continued following Darion as they proceeded through the camp. They poked around the area for a little while, finding nothing. Eventually they made their way towards a small group of ruins that seemed relatively empty. Without uttering a word Darion proceeded forward. As the two came to a ramp they heard the sounds of a small commotion being made. Quickly they climbed the ramp and found themselves on a particularly flat area.

They saw two men standing there, seeming to be having an argument. One was a mage dressed in traditional robes and had short hair along with a rather intense glare. The other was a rather handsome young man with scale armor, trim and well kept hair, and a cocky smile on his face, as well as a shield and sword that looked unfamiliar to Darion. He turned to face Lucindae whose attention was focused on the younger of the two people arguing. "Shall we go investigate?" Darion asked, getting Lucindae's attention.

Lucindae cleared her throat, nodding as she blushed. "Of course, lead on." She said quietly.

As the two got closer Darion could hear what the mage was saying. "What is it now?" He asked the younger man. "Haven't Grey Wardens asked more than enough of the circle?" Darion almost winced at the malice dripping from the mage's voice like dew from a leaf.

"I simply came to deliver a message from the revered mother, ser mage." The young man said, being both as polite and as sarcastic as possible at the same time. The two Wardens-to-be found this very amusing. "She desires your presence."

"What her reverence 'desires' is of no concern to me!" The mage growled. "I am busy helping the Grey Wardens…by the king's orders I might add!" Darion couldn't help but growl quietly in his throat. He didn't like this mage once bit. He could tell that Lucindae didn't like him either, but it seemed as though they had different reasons.

"Should I have asked her to write a note?" The man asked, his voice now dripping with sarcasm. Darion couldn't help but notice the giggle Lucindae let out. This didn't seem to draw the attention of the other two.

"Tell her I will not be harassed in this manner!" The mage stated boldly and angrily.

"Yes, I was harassing you by giving you a message." The man replied curtly. Darion admitted to himself that the other man was correct. There was no actual harassment involved and the mage was just looking for excuses.

"Your glibness does you no credit." The mage said, sighing.

"Here I thought we were getting along so well." The young man said, almost laughing. "I was even going to name one of my children after you…the grumpy one."

_Clever…_ Darion thought, almost slapping his forehead. He did notice, however, that Lucindae began giggling a little more this time.

"Enough!" The mage said with defeat in his voice. "I will speak to the woman if I must." He turned around walking towards Darion and Lucindae. He shoved them both aside. " Get out of my way, fools!"

"You know, one good thing about the Blight is how it brings people together." The man said, looking at the two with a smirk on his face.

"You are a very strange man." Darion commented, as he got closer.

"You're not the first to tell me that." The man said, shrugging his shoulders. Darion noticed that the man's attention kept flickering over to Lucindae, then back to Darion. He rubbed his chin for a second, looking the two over. "Wait, we haven't met have we?" He asked, a certain level of suspicion in his voice. "I don't suppose you'd happen to be another mage?"

"Would that make your day worse?" Lucindae asked hesitantly.

"Hardly." He replied, chuckling. "I just like to know my chances of being turned into a toad at any given moment." He paused for a moment, snapping his fingers. "Wait, I do know who you two are. You're some of Duncan's new recruits." He sighed placing his palm against his face. "I should have recognized you sooner, I apologize."

"And you must be Alistair?" Lucindae asked, a small bit of hope in her voice.

"Did Duncan mention me?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "Nothing bad, I hope." Alistair shrugged his shoulders, continuing. "As the junior member of the order, I'll be accompanying you when you prepare for the Joining."

"What can you tell me about this Joining?" Darion asked, truly curious now.

"Honestly, nothing." Alistair replied, sighing. "Try not to worry about it. It will… just distract you." Alistair then leaned in closer, almost whispering. "So, I'm curious. Have you actually ever encountered Darkspawn before?"

The two shook their heads. "No, I haven't." Darion replied. "But one of the others have. The elf of our group."

"When I fought my first one, I wasn't prepared for how monstrous it was." Alistair said, almost reminiscing. "I can't say I'm looking forward to encountering another. Anyhow, whenever you're ready let's get back to Duncan. I imagine he's eager to get things started."

"As are a few of the other Wardens…" Darion grumbled to himself.

"I look forward to traveling with you." Lucindae said, extending her hand.

"You do?" Alistair asked, shaking her hand. "Huh, that's a switch." Lucindae backed away, a red hue coming to her face. "If you haven any questions, let me know. Otherwise, I'll just lead on." Alistair said, turning away and heading off a bit south.

Lucindae and Darion quickly followed him, hoping to get this done as soon as possible. They eventually followed Alistair to a bonfire where Duncan was standing near and warming himself. Alistair then approached him. Duncan looked up. "You found Alistair, did you?" He asked, looking at the three people. "Good, I'll assume you're both ready to begin preparations?" Duncan then turned his head towards the Junior Warden. "Assuming, of course, that you're quite finished riling up mages, Alistair?"

"What can I say?" Alistair asked, a smile coming to his face. "The revered mother ambushed me. The way she wields guilt they should stick her in the army." Darion and Lucindae both couldn't help but give a small laugh at the joke.

Duncan sighed rubbing his temples. "She forced you to sass the mage, did she?" He asked, putting his hand down. "We cannot afford to antagonize anyone, Alistair. We don't need to give anyone more ammunition against us."

"I apologize, Duncan." Alistair said, bowing his head in respect. "I'll go collect who we're missing." Alistair quickly walked off.

As Darion followed the Warden with his eyes they came upon Lax and Ranthelis. He gave a quick sigh. "And here we go…" he whispered as they got closer.

"We couldn't find a damn thing out there in camp." Lax grunted, sitting down by the fire.

"Might I ask who that man we just passed was?" Ranthelis asked, ignoring the dwarf who was pulling out a wineskin from his pack.

"That was Alistair, the Junior Warden that will be assisting you in The Joining." Duncan said, taking Lax's wineskin away.

The dwarf reached out to grab it but Duncan got it far enough away from Lax that the dwarf just gave up, crossing his shoulders and pouting. "Just looked like a damned sissy to me." Lax commented grumpily.

"I don't think he's that bad." Lucindae said, watching as he left.

"He's a lot better than you, Lax." Darion said, smacking the dwarf across the back of the head.

Lax rubbed his head, grunting. "What? I can have an opinion too." Lax said defensively.

Ranthelis patted the dwarf's head. "Don't worry, you'll get your opinion once he returns."

Lax smacked the elf's hand away. "Don't patronize me you beardless monkey." He said, turning away from the group.

Ranthelis began chuckling a bit. "Of course, forgive my actions."

The two would have continued on with their witty banter, but Alistair came just in time with two other people. One was a fairly large man with a shaved head and red beard. He also had a large two-handed sword on his back and scale armor, much like Alistair's.

The other was a fairly young man with a look of confidence about him. He had a bow on his back and pure raven black hair and leather armor that looked about average in craft.

"This is Ser Jory." Alistair said, pointing towards the red headed man. "A knight, from Redcliffe."

"How do you do?" He asked, looking towards the others.

"And this here is Daveth." Alistair said with a bit of a strain in his voice, pointing at the man with black hair. "A…fellow from Denerim."

"That's me." Daveth said sarcastically. "I'm a fellow."

"And these, of course, are the recruits that Duncan said he was bringing." Alistair said, pointing to the rest of the group.

"That's me." Lax said before anyone else could say anything. "I'm the new guy."

"Now then." Duncan said, interrupting their words of greeting. "Since you are all here we can begin. You seven will be heading into the Korcari Wilds to perform two tasks. The first is to obtain six vials of Darkspawn blood, one for each recruit."

"What do we need the Darkspawn blood for?" Ranthelis asked, a little taken aback.

"For the Joining itself." Duncan replied. "I'll explain more once you've returned."

"Gee, thanks for enlightening us." Lax said in a huff.

"And what's the second task?" Darion asked, ignoring Lax.

"There was once a Grey Warden archive in the wilds, abandoned long ago when we could no longer afford to maintain such a remote outpost." Duncan explained. "It has recently come to our attention that some scrolls have been left behind, magically sealed to protect them." He turned his head towards the Junior Warden. "Alistair, I want you to retrieve those scrolls if you can."

"What kind of scrolls are these?" Darion asked, raising his eyebrow.

"Old treaties, if you're curious." Duncan replied. "Promises of support made to the Grey Wardens long ago. They were once considered only formalities. With so many having forgotten their commitments to us, I suspect it may be a good idea to have something to remind them with."

Darion nodded. "Find the archive and seven vials of blood." He said, creating a mental recap. "Understood."

"Watch over your charges, Alistair." Duncan said, putting his hand on Alistair's shoulder. "Return quickly, and safely."

"We will." Alistair said, nodding.

"Then may the Maker watch over your path." Duncan said proudly. "I will see you when you return."

Without saying a word, Alistair indicated for the group to follow him. The Grey Warden led them through the camp, heading to the west. They eventually came upon a gate to the wilds with a guard standing at attention. He looked over them and nodded. "I'm told you all have business in the Wilds." He said, stepping to the side. "The gate's open for you…just be careful out there. Even a Grey Warden won't be safe in the forest tonight."

The guard opened the gate and the group stepped through. As they entered the wilds they couldn't help but feel a strange sensation that they were being watched overtake them. The forest was beautiful, if a bit dark. The trees were all lush and tall while the grass was green and the wildlife was plentiful. They seemed to be in a very marsh-like area of the wilds and pools of water gathered in every direction, creating a very clear path for the group to follow.

As they followed the path for a while they came upon the scene of a slaughter. The group instinctively drew their weapons as a precaution as Alistair bent over to examine the area. All of the bodies lying on the ground were human and only red blood was spread across the segment. He stood up and motioned for the rest of the group to follow.

As they continued the scene only got worse and worse. It seemed as though some unknown force wiped out a whole patrol group. Eventually they came to a man who was struggling to get to his feet. He looked up as he heard the group's footsteps. "Who…is that?" He asked, a great deal of pain in his voice. "Grey…Wardens…?"

"Well, he's not half as dead as he looks, is he?" Alistair asked, joking a bit.

"My scouting band was attacked by Darkspawn!" The dying soldier managed to say. "They came out of the ground…please, help me! I've got to return…to camp…"

Ranthelis leaned over the man, examining his wounds. "He's not going to die unless we leave him here." He stated, standing up. "He's not too horribly injured, so if we can help him he should make it."

"Let's bandage him up, at least." Lucindae said, taking pity on the poor man.

"I have bandages in my pack." Alistair said, kneeling down and pulling a roll of bandages from his pack. He quickly patched up the soldier to where he could stand.

The soldier got up, grunting. "Thank you…I've got to get out of here." As he said that he managed to limp towards the camp.

"Did you hear?" Jory asked nervously. "An entire patrol of seasoned men killed by Darkspawn!"

"Calm down, Ser Jory." Alistair said in a calming voice. "We'll be fine if we're careful."

"Those soldiers were careful, and they were still overwhelmed." Jory said, looking around to make sure nothing would come out and attack them. "How many Darkspawn can the seven of us slay? A dozen? A hundred? There's an entire army out in these forests!"

"The man has a point, Alistair." Ranthelis pointed out. "How can we be sure we don't stumble into an entire army of these monsters?"

"There are Darkspawn about, but we're in no danger of walking into the bulk of the horde." Alistair stated.

"How do you know?" Jory asked. "I'm not a coward, but this is foolish and reckless." As he said this Ranthelis turned his head towards Lax and smiled mockingly. Lax proceeded to extend his middle appendage at the elf and turned away with a grunt. "We should go back."

"You sound like a coward to me." Lax mumbled in his deep dwarven voice.

"I…am simply trying to stay alive." Jory said, glaring at the dwarf. "You do not see me fleeing do you?"

"A bit of fear isn't unnatural, you know." Alistair commented. "Few relish meeting Darkspawn up close. I know I don't."

"I'm looking forward to killing them." Lax said, turning to face Alistair.

"Bloodthirstiness is such a charming feature, too." Alistair said in a joking manner. "Did you know that?" He shook his head, getting to a more serious tone. "Know this: All Grey Wardens can sense Darkspawn. Whatever their cunning, I guarantee they won't take us by surprise. That's why I'm here."

"You see, ser knight?" Daveth asked, mocking Jory. "We might die, but we'll be warned about it first."

Jory raised his eyebrow, skeptical. "That is…reassuring?"

"That doesn't mean I'm here to make this easy, however." Alistair stated, getting back to business. "So let's get a move on."

As the group began moving Darion smacked Lax across the back of the head again. "Ow!" The dwarf said, rubbing the back of his head again. "What'd I do that time?"

Ranthelis chuckled, patting the dwarf on the head. "Maybe when you're older."

"Bah, shut it you damned knife-ear." Lax said, smacking the hand away again. "How do we even know where we're going?"

Alistair tilted his head back. "I have a map, don't worry your pretty dwarf head about that. But I'd suggest you keep your voice down. I'd prefer not to have Darkspawn swooping down upon us today."

Lax began grumbling, following Alistair along with the rest of the group. After a few minutes of wandering the group came to a bridge, where a tall creature dressed in furs and feathers was standing. "Is that one of the Darkspawn?" Lax asked, looking to Alistair.

"Yes, but be careful. I don't think it knows we're…" Alistair's voice drifted off as the dwarf began charging at the creature, screaming at the top of his lungs while his axe was drawn.

Darion smacked his forehead with the palm of his hand. "Idiot!" He shouted, running after the dwarf.

"I guess we lost the element of surprise." Alistair sighed, going after the rest of the group as they charged forward as well.

Lax was about to cut down the Darkspawn in the furs when it sent out a burst of energy from its staff, knocking the dwarf backwards. It was then four creatures that seemed to be about as tall as Lax surrounded the dwarf. "Alright…" The dwarf said, holding his axe in a defensive position. "Who's the first to eat some sodding dirt?" One of the creatures attacked Lax with a vicious looking dagger, but the dwarf stuck his blade in its stomach before it could make contact. The creature tilted its head forward as it died.

The dwarf was about to cheer when the other creatures attack. "Oh damn…" The dwarf said as the creatures began swinging their weapons. Daveth quickly cut one down while Lucindae froze another solid. As the fourth once swung at the helpless dwarf, Darion threw his sword at the creature with all his might. Remarkably, it hit spot on, killing the creature before it could kill Lax.

The one in furs, which seemed to be the leader of this group, let out a blood-curdling yell and cast a small fireball at Alistair, who had begun charging at it. Alistair lifted his shield and blocked the fireball, flying back a few feet. As Alistair was blown back, Ranthelis was sprinting up the hill at amazing speed. Before the leader of the Darkspawn could react, it was already dead, a blade sticking in its heart.

As the last Darkspawn fell to the ground Lax gave out a cheer. "Alright, that went better than expected!"

As he said this Darion smacked him across the back of the head yet again. "What the hell did you do that for?" He asked, glaring at the dwarf who was still rubbing his head.

"I was just going to kill me some Darkspawn." Lax said innocently. "Isn't that what Grey Wardens do?"

"Yes, but generally they have a plan other than 'kill harder'." Alistair said, rubbing his temples. "I'd suggest that next time, you think before you act. We can't afford to let the entire forest know that we're here."

Ranthelis had been ignoring the rest of the group as the lectured the dwarf, filling five vials with Darkspawn blood. He figured that this was more important right now, since they were still alive. As they finished Ranthelis held the vials in front of their faces. "Alright, that's about it." He said, a hint of pride in his voice. "Just one more and then we just need the scrolls."

"Right…then I'd suggest we get moving." Alistair said, looking over a map. "We shouldn't be too far now. Just a bit north and we're good."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Lax said happily. "We've still got more Darkspawn to kill!"

The dwarf was about to start running forward towards where Alistair had indicated when Ranthelis stopped him. "Maybe I should go on ahead." He said slowly. "To make sure we don't stumble into any traps."

"That's better than my idea." Alistair said. "I was going to suggest we go out and start stabbing anything that moved."

Not bothering to respond, Ranthelis began sneaking through the shadows of the trees. Luckily, being an elf and native to the forest helped him to hide himself. He left the group behind and quickly began making his way north.

As a few minutes passed the group started getting worried. "You don't think he's hurt do you?" Lucindae asked. Looking at the direction Ranthelis went.

"Bah, he's a knife-ear." Lax stated. "He can slink around with the best of the best."

"He has been gone a while." Darion commented.

"Touching." Ranthelis said, stepping out of the shadows. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you started to care."

"Not on your life, elf." Lax said, walking up.

"Bad news." Ranthelis said, ignoring Lax.

"My favorite kind, do continue." Alistair said, sighing.

"We've got quite a few Darkspawn rummaging around a large pile of ruins." Ranthelis said. "One of them was dressed in come decent looking armor and had a large axe. It was also a little bigger than a normal human. I think it was some kind of alpha to them."

Alistair sighed, sitting down. "Damn, this makes things more complicated. What are we going to do?" He asked, looking to the rest of the group.

"Well, it seems that we're going to have to fight them if we want those treaties." Darion said, looking in the direction Ranthelis came from.

"Wait, we're not going against them if we're outnumbered, right?" Jory asked, his legs almost shaking.

"Oh shut it, you." Daveth said, glaring at the knight. "We need to get those treaties, or the Wardens won't have any allies."

"For once I agree with you Daveth." Alistair said. "But we still need a plan."

"Actually." Ranthelis commented. "I may have an idea."

"Then spit it out, elf." Lax grunted. "Let's see what you have planned for us."

"Remarkably, the plan involves mostly you, Lax." Ranthelis said, smiling.

"…What exactly do you need me to do?" Lax asked, suspicious.

"You'll see." Ranthelis said, gathering the rest of the group around him. For some reason Lax got the feeling this plan would get him into a lot of trouble.

"Are you sure this will work?" Darion asked Ranthelis as they sat in a nearby bush.

"Look, all Lax needs to do is make noise." Ranthelis said in a hushed tone. "I think he can do that much."

Darion sighed, watching as the dwarf walked into a clearing near the center of where their group was hiding. After a few moments passed the dwarf took in a deep breath and began yelling at the top of his lungs at the nearby ruins.

A couple of seconds passed. Then the sound of rumbling footsteps could be heard. "Guys…you coming now?" Lax asked, nervous. Soon the Darkspawn were visible, including the one Ranthelis described earlier. "Guys?" Lax looked around, almost scared now. As the Darkspawn drew to about ten feet the rest of the group jumped out, Lucindae being the first. She sent out a cone of fire that consumed five of the creatures. Daveth launched a couple of arrows that killed two more and Jory began slicing through them.

"See, I told you it would work!" Ranthelis shouted as he jumped in the middle of three Darkspawn, spinning his blades around and killing all three of them. Alistair then charged along with Darion into the midst of the fray, keeping the Darkspawn at bay with their shields as they slew them with their swords. Eventually Lax joined in, cutting left and right.

As the bodies fell the enemy numbers began growing thin. That was when the alpha attacked, swinging at Alistair and knocking him down to the ground. It was about to finish Alistair off when Ranthelis tossed some dirt into its eyes and Darion slammed into it. The creature fell to the ground with a hard thud and Lax ran up to cut off its head.

The creature kicked Darion off, blocking Lax's axe with its own two handed weapon. It pushed the dwarf back and stood up, swinging at Alistair once again. It never reached the Warden, however. Lucindae had frozen it just before its weapon got to Alistair, who breathed a sigh of relief. "See what happens when we work as a team?" He said, turning away from the frozen Darkspawn.

It was then that the alpha began breaking out of its icy prison, cracks forming in the coating. It burst out and was about to swing at Alistair until it stopped. It slowly looked down at its stomach to find Lax's axe buried deep in its stomach. A moment later it fell to the ground, blood pooling out of its body. "See what happens when you're not paying attention?" The dwarf asked, kicking the corpse. "Damn nug humpers…"

"Right…" Alistair said, a little embarrassed. "The documents should be up in those ruins. I think we should go and investigate."

Ranthelis collected one last vial of Darkspawn blood, following the group afterwards. He couldn't shake the feeling that they were still being watched. As he got to the inside of the ruins he found Alistair hovering over a broken chest and scratching his head in confusion. "Where could they have gone?" He asked the group, all of who shrugged.

It was then that a voice caught the group's attention. "Well, well, what have we here?" Ranthelis' eyes quickly darted to the source of the voice. He gasped when he saw a beautiful woman wearing a red scarf across her breast and waist with black hair tied in a bun and blackened pants standing close to their position. He almost couldn't believe that such a thing of beauty would be wandering around in these wilds. It was then that he noticed the gnarled staff on her back. He made a guess that it wasn't for walking. "Are you vultures, I wonder?" She asked, her voice taunting the group. "Scavengers poking amidst a corpse whose bones were long since cleaned? Or merely intruders, come into these Darkspawn-filled wilds of mine in search of easy prey?" Her eyes darted to Darion, as she assumed he was leading the group.

"Where did you come from?" He asked, drawing his weapon. "Stay back!"

"Do I appear a stalking predator, ready to leap upon her find?" She asked, more amused than anything else. "There is no need to fear me." She began walking towards the group, who began stepping away from her. "I have watched your progress for some time. 'Where do they go,' I wondered. 'Why are they here?' And now, you disturb ashes none have touched for so long. Why is that?" She stopped walking once she got to the top of a hill, turning to face the group once more.

"Don't answer her." Alistair said, glaring up at the woman. "She looks Chasind, and that means others may be nearby."

The woman chuckled, looking at the group with amusement. "You fear barbarians will swoop down upon you?"

"Yes, swooping is bad." Alistair said, making sure she understood he didn't like the action of swooping whatsoever.

"She's a witch of the wilds she is!" Daveth exclaimed, stepping back. "She'll turn us into toads!"

"Witch of the wilds?" The woman asked, curious. "Such idle fancies, those legends. Have you no minds of your own?" Her attention was then drawn to Ranthelis, who was the only one without his weapons drawn. He was too infatuated with this woman and her animalistic presence to bother trying to attack. "You there, handsome lad." She said, pointing to the elf. "Tell me your name and I shall tell you mine. Let us be civilized."

"I'm Ranthelis." The elf said, taking a deep bow. "A pleasure to meet you." This greeting caused surprised gasps from the rest of the party. Even the mysterious woman seemed a bit taken aback.

"Now that is a proper civil greeting, even here in the wilds." She said, smiling. Ranthelis could have sworn her smile was the coldest thing he'd ever seen. It reminded him of a cat ready to pounce. "You may call me Morrigan. Shall I guess your purpose? You sought something in that chest, something that is here no longer?"

"Here no longer?" Alistair questioned. "You stole them didn't you? You're…some kind of…sneaky…witch-thief!" Everyone in the party, even Lucindae, groaned a bit at Alistair's mastery of words. Not even Lax found it amusing.

"How very eloquent." Morrigan commented without missing a beat. "How does one steal from dead men?"

"Quite easily, it seems." Alistair stated, his face turning a bit red. "Those documents are Grey Warden property, and I suggest you return them."

"I will not." Morrigan stated bluntly. "For 'twas not I who removed them. Invoke a name that means nothing here any longer if you wish; I am not threatened."

"Then who removed them?" Darion asked, regaining his composure.

"'Twas my mother, in fact." Morrigan said.

"Your mother?" Lax questioned suddenly.

"Yes, my mother." Morrigan said, sighing. "Did you assume I spawned from a log?"

"A thieving, weird talking-log, perhaps." Alistair said, a slight smile forming on his lips.

"Not all in the wilds are monsters." The woman sighed, rubbing her temples. "Flowers grow, as well as toads. If you wish, I will take you to my mother. 'Tis not far from here, and you may ask her for your papers, if you like."

"We **should** get those treaties, but I dislike this…Morrigan's sudden appearance." Alistair whispered. "It's too convenient."

"I say we go with her." Ranthelis said in all honesty.

"She'll put us all in the pot she will." Daveth said, worried. "Just you wait."

"If the pot's warmer than this forest, it'd be a nice change." Jory said. Ranthelis found it interesting that their roles were switched in this situation. Usually Jory would be the one wanting to run away instead of Daveth.

"Follow me, then." Morrigan said, almost bored. "If it pleases you."

The group followed Morrigan through a clearing of bushes to a small hut that remained well hidden, even from the Darkspawn. "Something doesn't feel right here." Darion said, looking around.

"I agree…" Lucindae said. "Let's go back."

"Unfortunately we need those papers." Alistair sighed, still following Morrigan. "But don't worry, I'll make sure you get out of this in one piece."

Lucindae nodded, as she blushed a bit. Eventually, Morrigan led them to an old woman. "Greetings, mother." She said with a slight bit of distaste. "I bring before you several Grey Wardens who…"

"I see them girl." The old lady said, her voice sounding like nails on a chalkboard. To everyone she seemed like any old lady, her face was wrinkled, hair long and matted, her clothes tattered and dirty. But for some reason everyone got the feeling that she was something more. "Much as I expected." The woman continued.

"Are we supposed to believe you were expecting us?" Alistair asked, skeptical.

"You are required to do nothing, least of all believe." The old lady stated. "Shut one's eyes tight or open one's arms wide…either way, ones a fool."

"She's a witch, I tell you!" Daveth said, eyeing the two women suspiciously. "We shouldn't be talking to her!"

"Quiet, Daveth!" Jory said, glaring at the other man. "If she's really a witch, do you wanna make her mad?"

"There is a smart lad." The woman said, almost laughing. "Sadly irrelevant to the larger scheme of things, but it is not I who decides. Believe what you will." She then turned her attention to Darion. "And what of you? Do you possess a different viewpoint? Or do you believe as the others do?"

"I believe you have something we need." Darion stated, wanting to leave as soon as possible.

"They did not come to listen to your wild tales, mother." Morrigan said, a little agitated.

"True, they came for their treaties, yes?" The woman asked, grabbing some papers near the entrance of the hut. "And before you begin barking, your precious seal wore off long ago. I have protected these." As she said this she handed the papers to Darion, who quickly put them in his pack.

"You…oh, you protected them?" Alistair said, amazed.

"And why not?" The woman asked. "Take them to your Grey Wardens and tell them that this blight's threat is greater than they realize."

Before anyone could say anything Ranthelis began bowing deeply. "Thank you for returning them."

"Such manners!" The woman said, almost amazed. "Always in the last place you look. Like stockings!" The party raised their eyebrows in confusion at the woman's last statement. Ranthelis shook off his confusion and stood up. "Oh do not mind me. You have what you came for."

"Time for you to go then." Morrigan said, looking directly at Ranthelis. The elf could have sworn his face was going red.

"Do not be ridiculous, girl." The woman teased. "These our your guests."

"Oh, very well." Morrigan sighed. "I will show you out of the woods. Follow me…" As she said this, the group began hurrying to follow the young woman and get away from the old hag.

"Strange swamp people…" Lax mumbled under his breath as Morrigan took them back to camp.

The group walked up to Duncan, who was still standing by the fire. The sun was completely down and the camp seemed rather empty. "So you return from the Wilds." The senior Warden stated. "Have you been successful?"

"We have." Darion stated, producing the papers and Ranthelis pulled out the vials of blood.

"Good." Duncan nodded. "I've had the circle mages preparing. With the blood you've retrieved, we can begin the Joining immediately."

"Now will you tell us what this ritual is about?" Darion asked.

"I will not lie; we Grey Wardens pay a heavy price to become what we are." Duncan said solemnly. "Fate may decree that you pay your price now, rather than later."

"I have no problem facing what is to come." Darion said, looking Duncan in the eyes.

"I agree, let's have it done." Jory stated.

"Then let us begin." Duncan said, looking to Alistair. "Alistair, take them to the old temple."

The group followed Alistair, who was remarkably silent for once. This bothered the group to no end. What would happen in this ritual? No one could tell. As they got to the ruins where Lucindae and Darion first met Alistair they saw Daveth and Jory arguing. "The more I hear about this Joining the less I like it." Jory said, pacing nervously.

"Are you blubbering again?" Daveth asked, annoyed.

"Why all these damned tests?" The knight asked, angry. "Have I not earned my place?"

"Maybe it's tradition." Daveth said slyly. "Maybe they're just trying to annoy you."

Lucindae put her hand on Jory's shoulder. "Calm down." She said in a soothing voice. "There's nothing we can do about it now."

Jory shrugged her hand off his shoulder. "I only know that my wife is in Highever with a child on the way. If they had warned me…it just doesn't seem fair." Darion cringed at the mention of Highever.

"Would you have come if they'd warned you?" Daveth asked. "Maybe that's why they don't. The warden do what they must, right?"

"Including sacrificing us?" Jory yelled.

"I'd sacrifice a lot more if I knew it'd end the blight." Daveth stated strongly.

Lax walked in between the two, shoving them apart. "Will you both shut up?" He stated, annoyed.

"Yeah, ser knight, try not to wet your trousers until the ritual starts." Daveth taunted.

"I've just never faced a foe I couldn't engage with my blade." Jory said, finishing their argument.

Duncan appeared from seemingly nowhere. Looking at the group. "At last we come to the Joining." He said slowly. "The Grey Wardens were founded during the first Blight, when humanity stood on the verge of annihilation." Darion noticed Jory look at a goblet on a nearby pile of rocks and then back to Duncan. They had all seen the vials poured into the goblet. They just wondered what they would have to do with the blood. "So it was, that the first Grey Wardens drank of Darkspawn blood, and mastered their taint." He finished.

Everyone stepped back and gasped. "We're…going to drink the blood…of those creatures?" Jory asked, obviously disgusted.

"As the first Grey Warden's did before us, as we did before you. This is the source of our power, and our victory."

"Oh damn…" Lax said, staring at the large goblet standing on the pile or rubble.

"Those who survive the Joining become immune to the taint." Alistair explained, ignoring the dwarf. "We can sense it in the Darkspawn and use it to slay the archdemon."

There was a brief moment of silence as the group stared at the large goblet. "Let's get on with it, then." Lax finally said, breaking the silence.

Duncan nodded, saying, "We speak only a few words prior to the Joining, but these words have been said since the first." It was then that Duncan looked to Alistair. "Alistair, if you would?"

The junior Grey Warden looked to the ground and the rest of the group did the same. Eventually Alistair began praying. "Join us, brothers and sisters. Join us in the shadows where we stand, vigilant. Join us as we carry the duty that cannot be forsworn. And should you perish, know that your sacrifice will not be forgotten. And that one day, we shall join you."

Duncan picked up the goblet, holding it in front of his body. "Step forward Daveth." He said slowly. The rogue hesitantly walked towards the goblet, holding it to his lips for only a moment. A silent second passed and all seemed well until Daveth began convulsing and writhing in pain, coughing all the while. Duncan closed his eyes for a moment as Daveth fell to his knees, looking up at the group who stepped back when they saw his pure white eyes. "I'm sorry Daveth." He said as the rogue fell face first, never to rise again.

"Oh damn!" Lax exclaimed, jumping back.

"Step forward, Jory." Duncan said, turning to the knight.

"But…I have a wife, a child!" He exclaimed, drawing his sword and stepping back into a wall. "Had I known…"

"There is not turning back…" Duncan said, his voice and stare turning to ice. He slowly stepped forward to Jory, drawing a small knife.

"No!" Jory said, truly frightened. "You ask too much! There is no glory in this!" He swung his large two-handed sword at the old man. Duncan parried the exceedingly large blade with one small dagger, and before anyone had time to react he stabbed Jory in the stomach. As the knight's blood spilled onto the floor he looked up at Duncan.

"I am sorry." Duncan said, a tear almost running down his face. He then looked at a dumbfounded Darion. "But the joining is not yet complete." He said, walking over to Darion. He handed the goblet to the young warrior. "You are called upon to submit yourself to the taint for the greater good."

Darion held the goblet up to his lips, that one brief moment felt like an eternity. He slowly tipped the goblet back and let the blood run into his mouth. It burned, and it burned like no drink on this earth. And as the liquid poured down his throat Duncan said, "From this moment forth, you are a Grey Warden…" Darion then felt a large pulse through his body, and then Darkness swallowed him.


	6. The Tower

Darion awoke to see the night had not drifted away. Duncan and Alistair were hovering over him, a look of relief on their faces. "W-what happened…" He said, rubbing his temples.

"It is finished, welcome." Duncan said, a look of pride on his face.

"Two more deaths…" Alistair sighed, standing up and cracking his back. "In my joining only one of us died but it was…horrible. I'm glad that you made it through."

"How do you feel?" Duncan asked as Darion got to his feet, wobbling a bit.

Darion looked around at his surroundings, he was still at the place of the joining. The bodies of Jory and Daveth, however, had gone missing. He saw the sleeping forms of Lax and Lucindae, but Ranthelis had gone missing as well. "Where's Ranthelis?" He asked, a little worried.

"Aw, you sound as if you care." A voice sounded from behind him. Darion turned abruptly to see Ranthelis leaning against a section of broken wall. Darion picked up, however, that he wasn't leaning against the wall to make an appearance. "I've been up for a little while now, though it's nice to know you were worried."

"And the others?" Darion asked, turning back around to face Alistair and Duncan.

"They'll be fine in a little while, Lax actually woke up before all of you." Alistair said, a bit of a smile on his face. "But as soon as he woke up he drank himself back to sleep."

"You should've seen how worried he was when Lucindae's turn came up." Ranthelis chuckled, walking unsteadily towards Darion. "He kept pacing around until he saw she wasn't dead."

Alistair blushed and cleared his throat a bit. "Yes well…"

Darion shook his head, sighing. "I still can't believe you killed Ser Jory." He said, a bit upset.

"Jory was warned that there was no turning back…as were you all." Duncan said, almost uncaringly. "When he went for his blade, however, he left me no choice."

"I'm also amazed that he managed to parry a great-sword with one dagger." Ranthelis pointed out. Duncan ignored the comment and continued.

"It brought me no pleasure to end his life. The blight demands sacrifices from us all, thankfully you all stand here as proof they are not all made in vain."

A moment of silence filled the air as Duncan's words hung about. The only sound heard was Lax's murmuring. After the moment had passed Alistair broke the spell. "Did you have dreams?" He asked, a look of worry on his face. "I had terrible dreams after my joining."

"Such dreams come when you begin to sense the Darkspawn, as we all do." Duncan explained. "That and many other things can be explained in the months to come."

"Before I forget there is one last part to your joining." Alistair said, reaching into a pouch on his belt. He pulled out three pendants with a red gem in the center. When Darion looked around again he noticed that Ranthelis was wearing one around his neck. "We take some of the blood and put it in a pendant. Something to remind us…of those who didn't make it this far." As Darion took the pendant and placed it around his neck he noticed Alistair bow his head in a moment of prayer.

"Take some time." Duncan said, placing his hands on both Darion's and Ranthelis' shoulders to steady them. "When you're ready, I'd like you to accompany me to a meeting with the king."

"What about the others?" Ranthelis asked, looking over to the sleeping two.

"Leave them for now. You can explain what happens once you hear the meeting." Duncan said, releasing his grip.

"What kind of meeting?" Ranthelis asked again, tilting his head to the side.

"The king is discussing strategy for the upcoming battle. I am not sure why he has requested your presence, however. The meeting is to the west, down the stairs. Please attend as soon as you are able." With that Duncan and Alistair turned to leave, Alistair heading back to the bonfire where they all met and Duncan heading off to where the meeting was being held.

Darion sat down, crossing his legs for stability. "Ugh, my head feels like it's about to fall off." He said, rubbing the back of his head.

"Well you did fall backwards pretty hard." Ranthelis said, sitting next to Darion. "Frankly, I'm just happy to be alive."

Darion sighed. "I don't know, it's hard to be happy in times like these."

"Well you can be thankful that some of us made it out alive. This also gives you a good opportunity to get back at Howe." The elf stated, leaning back.

Darion gave a smile, if a slightly devious one. "That is a good point. After the battle I'll be able to take my revenge from his bleeding hide."

Ranthelis paused for a moment, unsure of how to react to the sudden change in attitude. After a moment he shrugged. "Let's wait a few minutes to regain our balance. We'll head over to see the good king and Loghain once we're done here."

Darion shrugged, looking forward. "I guess we have to don't we?"

The two paused for a few minutes, still trying to grasp the one concept they had in their minds. Grey Wardens…they were the legends that were spoken so highly of. They didn't expect it to go this far in their short lives. After a few minutes had passed Ranthelis stood up, stretching his back. "Well the spawn of hell aren't going to kill themselves." He offered his hand to help Darion up. "Come on, let's go see what the king has in store for us."

Darion stood up, not bothering to take Ranthelis' help. "I can get there on my own, thanks." He said, walking forward.

Ranthelis shrugged and began following. "As you wish."

The two walked to a section of the ruin that was surrounded by statues. A small table was set up with the king, Duncan, a fairly old man wearing full plate and long black hair, an old woman wearing chantry robes, and a man wearing mages robes around it. Ranthelis and Darion heard King Cailan speaking to the man in full plate. "Loghain my decision is final." He said with an edge to his voice. "I will stand by the Grey Wardens in this assault."

"You risk too much, Cailan." Loghain said, his voice seemed to get on both Ranthelis' and Darion's nerves for some odd reason. "The Darkspawn horde is too dangerous for you to be playing hero on the front lines."

"If that's the case, perhaps we should wait for the Orlesian forces to join us, after all." Cailan retorted with the intent to insult Loghain.

The insult seemed to work as Loghain gritted his teeth. "I must repeat my protest to your fool notion that we need the Orlesians to defend ourselves."

"It is not a 'fool notion'." The king stated defensively. "Our arguments with the Orlesians are a thing of the past…and you will remember who is king." Ranthelis and Darion picked up a definite threat coming from Cailan's last statement.

"How fortunate Marric did not live to see his son ready to hand Ferelden over to those who enslaved us for a century!" The general growled, giving Cailan a condescending glare.

"Then our current forces will have to suffice, won't they?" Cailan said, a smug tone coming into his voice. "Duncan, are your men ready for battle?" He stated, turning to face Duncan, who looked as if he didn't want to be a part of the argument.

"They are, your majesty." Duncan replied as Ranthelis and Darion moved to be next to the Grey Warden.

"And these are the recruits I met earlier on the road?" Cailan asked, looking over the two new wardens. "I understand congratulations are in order."

Darion didn't say a word but Ranthelis gave an ornate bow to the king. "Thank you, your majesty. But I can assure you that we don't feel too special."

"Oh but you are!" Cailan said, maybe a little too excitedly. "Every Grey Warden is needed now more than ever."

"Your fascination with glory and legends will be your undoing, Cailain." Loghain stated firmly, glaring at the king. "We must attend to reality."

Darion stiffened up a bit, but managed to keep his temper under control before he said anything drastic, merely watching as the argument continued. "Fine," Cailan sighed, giving in. "Speak your strategy." Everyone at the table except the two new wardens bent down to look at a map that was spread out across the table. Cailan pointed to what looked like their location. "The Grey Wardens and I draw the Darkspawn into charging our lines, and then…?"

"You will alert the tower to light the beacon, signaling my men to charge from cover." Loghain sighed, as if he had explained this a hundred times before.

"To fight the Darkspawn, I remember." Cailan said, standing up straight.

"Evidently not." Ranthelis whispered to Darion, who stifled a chuckle.

"This is the tower of Ishal in the ruins, yes?" Cailan asked, not hearing what Ranthelis had said. "Who shall light this beacon?"

"I have a few men stationed there." Loghain replied, straightening up as well. "It's not a dangerous task, but it is vital."

"Then we should send our best." Cailan said, looking towards Ranthelis and Darion. "Send Alistair and the new Grey Wardens to make sure it is done."

"You mean I won't be fighting in the battle?" Darion asked, a little disappointed.

"We need the beacon." Duncan said in an understanding tone. "Without it, Loghain's men won't know when to charge."

"You see?" Cailan said happily. "Glory for everyone!"

"You rely on these Grey Wardens too much. Is that truly wise?" Loghain asked. Darion noticed that even Ranthelis had a bit of a twitch to the comment.

"Enough of your conspiracy theories, Loghain." Cailan sighed. "Grey Wardens battle the blight, no matter where they're from."

"Your Majesty, you should consider the possibility of the archdemon appearing." Duncan added.

"There have been no signs of any dragons in the wilds." Loghain pointed out.

"Isn't that what your men are here for, Duncan?" Cailan asked, looking expectantly at the Grey Wardens.

"I…yes, your Majesty." Duncan sighed.

The mage suddenly chimed in, his voice was very high pitched and even got on Loghain's nerves. "Your Majesty, the tower and its beacon are unnecessary. The circle of Magi—"

"We will not trust any lives to your spells, mage!" The woman from the chantry stated firmly, cutting the mage off. "Save them for the Darkspawn!"

"Enough!" Loghain said, stopping the two. "This plan will suffice. The Grey Wardens will light the beacon."

"Thank you, Loghain." Cailan said, sincerity in his voice. "I cannot wait for that glorious moment! The Grey Wardens battle beside the king of Ferelden to stem the tide of evil!"

Loghain turned to leave, as he did so he said, "Yes Cailan, a glorious moment for us all."

Ranthelis picked up a slightly malicious tone in the man's voice and decided it would be best to keep an eye on Loghain. He didn't have time to mull the thought over, however, because Duncan motioned for the two to follow. He eventually brought them to the bonfire where Alistair was waiting. Duncan quickly explained the plan to him.

"What? I won't be in the battle?" Alistair almost shouted.

"Oddly familiar…" Ranthelis whispered. Darion ignored the statement.

"This is by the king's personal request, Alistair." Duncan explained. "If the beacon is not lit, Teryn Loghain's men won't know when to charge."

"So he needs five Grey Wardens standing up there holding the torch. Just in case, right?" Alistair grumbled.

"I agree with Alistair. We should be in the battle." Darion commented.

"That is not your choice." Duncan said, maybe a bit firmly. "If king Cailan wishes Grey Wardens to ensure the beacon is lit, then Grey Wardens will be there." His gaze softened a bit after he was done with his statement. "We must Do whatever it takes to destroy the Darkspawn…exciting or no."

"I get it, I get it." Alistair said, conceding. "Just so you know, if the king ever asks me to put on a dress and dance the Remigold, I'm drawing the line…Darkspawn or no."

"I don't know, that could be a great distraction." Ranthelis chuckled.

"Me shimmying down the Darkspawn line? Sure, we could kill them while they roll around laughing." Alistair said, continuing on with the joke. Even Darion gave a chuckle at the comment. Duncan, however, wasn't impressed and gave an exasperated sigh.

"The tower is on the other side of the gorge from the king's camp, the way we came when we arrived." Duncan said after a moment. "You'll need to cross the gorge and head through the gate and up the tower entrance. From the top, you'll overlook the entire valley." Darion noticed Ranthelis cringe a bit at the description of where they'd light the beacon.

"Sounds easy enough." Ranthelis said, recovering quickly.

"We will signal you when the time is right." Duncan continued. "Alistair will know what to look for."

"Well I guess that's it. We all understand what we have to do now, I'll go and explain it to the others." Ranthelis said, quickly slipping away.

"I must join the others." Duncan said to the remaining two. "From here you are on your own. Remember, you are Grey Wardens. I expect you to be worthy of that title."

Duncan turned to leave but before he managed to start walking Alistair stopped him. "Duncan…may the Maker watch over you."

"May he watch over us all." Duncan said before he continued walking.

Darion sighed and turned to Alistair. "I guess we should hurry and collect our other companions before we head out."

"I suppose, lead the way, Darion." Alistair replied.

The two wardens quickly walked over to where the other people of the party were positioned. As soon as they walked up the stairs to where they were they heard Lax's voice loud and clear. "What? I won't get to be part of the battle?"

"That gets funnier every time I hear it." Ranthelis chuckled.

"Well I've had enough of Darkspawn." Lucindae sighed.

"Expect to see more of them." Alistair sighed. The group turned to face Alistair.

"So it's time to head out then?" Ranthelis asked.

Darion nodded, "If you didn't know already we're going to the tower. Are you all good enough to fight?"

"I'm always good to fight!" Lax grumbled. "I'm a dwarf, not some pansy arsed elf."

"Charming…" Alistair sighed. "Can we just get this over with?"

Darion nodded. "I agree with Alistair, let's get this done so we have nothing to worry about."

The way to the bridge proved uneventful, a few conversations sprung up from time to time but nothing too impressive. But when the five reached the bridge the sight of Cailan's army greeted them. It was an awe-inspiring sight, or so they thought. Slowly their eyes drifted towards the surrounding forest, and coming from it were hordes upon hordes of Darkspawn. They weren't charging, though, they were merely forming up…and their numbers were growing larger. "Oh piss…" Lax said, his voice drifting off.

"You can say that again." Ranthelis muttered. As they were crossing the bridge the Darkspawn had eventually stopped forming up, and were marching forward. The army of Fereldens held their line, barely. Suddenly the Darkspawn broke out into a charge. A shout was heard and herds of Mabari warhounds started charging through the ranks of Darkspawn. It did little to deter the oncoming horde, however. Soon a wave of arrows started flying through the air and cutting down Darkspawn. The horde kept charging, not even a dent was put into their numbers. Suddenly, without warning, large balls of fire began flying through the sky at the army of Fereldens. One such fireball hit the bridge right at the center of the party. The bridge absorbed the majority of the blow but a large chunk was blown out of it and the party was spread out across the bridge. Lucindae was lying dangerously close to the edge of the destroyed section of bridge, and it was still crumbling.

As the party slowly managed to get on their feet the bridge continued falling apart, and Lucindae was falling as well. "No!" Alistair shouted just as she began falling. Her arms were flailing as she started to fall to the ground that was so far down. Darion was about to write her off as finished until Alistair managed to run up with amazing speed and grab her arm. There was a moment of silence exchanged between Alistair and Lucindae as they locked eyes and he said, "Don't let go…"

The moment didn't last too long, however, because Alistair was starting to slide off the section of bridge. At this point Lax managed to work his way to the two and grabbed Alistair by his belt just as he fell off the edge. Darion had started to run over to help the dwarf, Ranthelis was about to do the same, but he paused when Lax planted his feet firmly in the ground and started to slowly step backwards. The elf and human were watching in amazement as Lax kept stepping backwards, managing to pull Alistair and Lucindae slowly closer to safety. "Oh…piss…this…is…really…difficult." The dwarf growled at his two companions.

"I think we need to give Lax more credit on his strength." Ranthelis said as the dwarf finished hauling the two up to safety.

"Noted." Darion said.

"We need to hurry and get to that beacon." Alistair said, blushing, Darion notice that Lucindae was blushing as well.

The five ran the rest of the length of the bridge, the sounds of intense battle coming from below. Once across the bridge they began making their way through a winding path of stairs and broken stones. Before they reached the top, however, the corpses of some of the guards stopped them. "Oh piss…" Lax drifted off again.

A few moments later all hell broke loose as Darkspawn started to swarm the group. Ranthelis quickly dispatched two of them by stabbing them straight in their hearts while Darion smashed one's face with his shield. Lax engaged a couple of them, managing to keep them at bay with his axe. As a few Darkspawn archers began firing from a small ledge Alistair managed to block them as Lucindae dispatched them with a few well-placed arcane bolts. The engagement lasted for a while in that fashion until the last of the Darkspawn fell. "I don't understand." Alistair panted. "I thought that there wasn't supposed to be any Darkspawn here."

"I thought you wanted to take part in the battle, Alistair." Ranthelis pointed out.

"Heh, that's right." Alistair chuckled. "Well I guess there's a silver lining to everything now isn't there?"

"We've got to hurry!" Darion shouted. "We've got to get to the beacon!"

"Chances are we've got to fight through waves of Darkspawn before we get to the top…" Lax sighed, following the rest of the group through the door.

As it turned out, Lax was correct in his assumption. The group had to fight through hordes of Darkspawn, almost losing their lives several times. One time they had to release a group of mabari to get past a wave. Once they managed to get up the top floor they had only one door left to open. They were beaten, tired, and really short tempered. "Thank the maker this is almost over." Alistair sighed as he placed his hand on the door. Slowly he turned the knob and opened the door to the room. The group was prepared to fight another wave of Darkspawn, but what they saw caught them completely off guard.

Standing before them was a very large and hideous creature. It had two giant horns on its head, stood maybe three times the height of a normal person, covered in scars and wounds, and the smell of the creature…it was overpowering. It was currently hunched over and eating the body of a dead guard, but once it heard the door open it reared its ugly head and gave an intimidating roar. The room went silent, even the sounds of battle seemed to quiet just a little, and amongst the silence the group heard Lax state plainly, "Oh piss…"

With that the creature charged forward, forcing the party to dart in various directions. It turned around to face Darion and swung a large and gnarled fist at the young man. Not having enough time to dodge, Darion began jumping back, holding his shield out in front of him. The creature made solid contact with the shield, making Darion fly back a good twenty feet and he the ground, hard. The wind flew out of his lungs as he heard the creature's feet slam and pound. There was a flash of light and the rumbling stopped. As Darion slowly sat up he saw the creature was covered in ice. His eyes darted toward Lucindae, who was panting heavily. The moment didn't last too long, however, because the creature immediately broke free of its icy prison and turned to start charging Lucindae.

While the monstrosity was charging Lax sprinted towards it, swinging his axe at its leg with all the might his dwarven body could muster, which coincidently, was a lot. The axe dug deep into the creature's leg and it howled in pain, making the room shake with the volume of its scream. It grabbed the dwarf, its hand managing to completely wrap around the dwarf. Afterwards it immediately threw Lax towards one of the walls. Darion winced as Lax hit the wall at full force, but noticed that the dwarf shook it off and stood back up, growling deeply.

The monster, however, wasn't paying any mind to Lax. The creature was now looming over Lucindae, who was casting arcane bolt after arcane bolt with little effect. Once it got closer the young mage raised her hands and sent out a long stream of fire, hitting the creature directly in the face. The monster stumbled back for a moment, looking as if it was defeated. This was not the case, however, as the creature regained its footing, with only a few scorch marks on it's hideous face. The creature slammed its giant fist to the ground, barely missing Lucindae but knocking her off balance and sending her stumbling back.

Alistair took advantage of the monster's crouching position and slammed his shield into the monster's face, making it stumble only slightly. While the creature was off balance, Ranthelis charged up stabbing both of his swords into the creature's shoulder. It howled in pain once more, standing and picking up the elf and raising its fist as if to beat Ranthelis to death. Time seemed to slow down, as the creature's attention wasn't focused on Lax, who had started charging once more, picking up his axe. With one mighty leap the dwarf raised his axe over his head in mid air and buried it into the monster's chest. The creature dropped Ranthelis to the ground and fell on its back. Lax stood on its chest but a moment, the creature raising its arms to either try to defend itself or kill the dwarf. Lax, however, didn't give it the chance to do anything else and tore his axe out of its chest. He then held the axe over his head and slammed it into the monster's skull.

The creature twitched for a moment, then its giant hand fell to the ground with a thud, never to move again. "I guess I owe you my thanks." Ranthelis said, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment.

"You're damn right you do, damn elf." Lax grumbled. "I don't know what the hell that thing was, but my axe smells sodding horrible."

The rest of the party breathed a sigh of relief, all except for Darion, who had run up to the area they were supposed to light the beacon. He quickly pulled out some flint and tinder, lighting the fire where it was supposed to be. "Ranthelis!" He called out. "Go to the balcony to see if Loghain's men are starting their charge!"

Ranthelis quickly sprinted towards the balcony that led outside, stopping in his tracks when he peered over the edge. "What's the matter?" Lax asked, walking over to the elf. "The big strong rogue afraid of heights?" Lax paused as well, looking onwards to the battle.

"What's going on?" Alistair asked, sitting down.

"The king's been overrun!" Ranthelis shouted, turning around. "We need to get down there, Teryn Loghain's fleeing the battle!"

"What!" Darion shouted, running towards the balcony. What Ranthelis said was true. Loghain's forces were retreating while Cailan's men were completely destroyed. As Darion watched in horror he saw the same kind of creature they had fought moments ago go after Cailan, picking him up. With horror the young warrior watched as the monster snapped his spine like a twig, throwing him to the ground like a sack of garbage. Suddenly, Duncan appeared, going into a furious assault that left the creature dead in the ground. Shortly after, however, Darkspawn overtook the Grey Warden.

Darion paused for a moment, the situation that just happened not fully grasping his mind yet. Then he heard the sound of an arrow making contact with a body. Darion soon realized that none of them had bows on their persons and turned around to see an arrow sticking out of Lax's back. "No…" He whispered as the dwarf hit the ground with a dull thud. He turned completely around to see the Darkspawn swarm the room. Then…nothing.


	7. Awakening

A/N:** Wow it's been a long time since I've updated this one. Don't worry though, I'll try and update as much as my schedule will allow me. Thanks to all you who have been watching and…well…waiting for this long.**

Ranthelis sat up, gasping for air. Suddenly a searing pain shot through his body and stars flew across his vision. He became light-headed and fell back down. To his surprise he didn't hit a hard ground, but a soft bed and a nice pillow. He shook his head for a moment and took in his surroundings once he could regain his focus. He appeared to be in some ramshackle shed with multiple animal pelts lying around, a fire was burning in a fireplace that was on the left wall, and there was a shelf with a multitude of books. There he saw a woman with raven black hair placing a few of them into the bookcase. It was someone he recognized but couldn't bring himself to say the name. Ranthelis' mind started to race, _Keep calm, check your situation._ He thought to himself. _You're currently alive, that's good. You're in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar location so far as you know. You're with a person that has assisted you in the past and…well she's not bad looking actually._ He shook his head, "Stay on topic." He scolded himself quietly. He slowly looked down at his chest to see that his armor and clothes were gone and in their place, bandages, quite a few of them too. He grunted and sat up much more slowly this time.

The woman heard Ranthelis grunt and turned to look at him with a slight smirk. "Ah, your eyes finally open." She said, walking towards the elf. "Mother shall be pleased."

The elf rubbed the bridge of his nose with his index finger and thumb, not only was hi body in searing pain, but he had a splitting headache. "What happened to the Darkspawn?" He asked.

"You were injured, and then mother rescued you." She stated bluntly. "Do you not remember?" She asked then, tilting her head to the side as she watched the elf.

"Wait…" Ranthelis drifted off, remembering Loghain leaving the field. "What happened to the army? To the king?"

"The man who was to respond to your signal quit the field." Morrigan replied, a little hesitation in her voice as she thought of the right words. "The Darkspawn won your battle, those he abandoned were massacred. Your friend, he is not taking it well." She finished, almost with a shrug.

Ranthelis stopped for a moment, she said "he" so that removed Lucindae from the group, Lax and Darion were more hardened than that and he didn't know king Cailan all that well to mourn his death. He wasn't even sure who survived out of his party. What happened after the Darkspawn? Was he the only one still alive? Questions raced through his mind. "My friend…you mean Alistair?" He finally asked.

"The suspicious, dim-witted one who was with you before, yes." Morrigan replied in a matter-of-factly tone. "He is outside by the fire, along with the rest of your companions. Mother asked to see you when you awoke."

Ranthelis gave a sigh of relief at the mention of his friends still being alive. Though how did one aged woman save them when there was so many? He sighed and decided it best not to question, as the answer would probably bring up more questions. He looked up when he was done mulling things over in his head. "Thank you for helping me, Morrigan." He said with a slight smile.

The witch looked down for a moment, a slight blush coming to her cheeks. "I…you are welcome." She said, not really knowing how to deal with the response. "Though mother did most of the work, I am no healer."

Ranthelis grunted and slid off of the bed, "I will go then." He said, his body screaming in pain with each step.

"I will stay, and make something to eat." Morrigan said, turning to the pot. She seemed to only want to speak what was necessary and cut out all the fluff of a regular conversation. She nodded towards a crate at the foot of the bed and Ranthelis nodded his thanks, walking over to it and cracking it open to find his armor and weapons.

After a few minutes passed of slipping on the leather very carefully to make sure he didn't agitate his injuries too much, he stepped outside to find himself in the familiar sight of Morrigan's hut. Outside he spotted Darion, Lax, Lucindae, and Alistair all sitting around the edge of the lake with a worried expression on their faces. They were all bandaged and looked to be in about as much pain that Ranthelis was in. Except for Morrigan's mother, who was watching the door of the hut when the elf stepped out. "See," she started reassuringly for Alistair. "Here is your fellow grey warden. You worry too much young man."

Alistair was the first to get up and hastily went Ranthelis. "You…you're alive." He said, breathing a deep sigh of relief. He gave a nervous chuckle. "We thought you were dead for sure."

Ranthelis shook his head and gave a weak smile. He rolled his shoulder to work out a bit of a cramp, only to find another twinge of pain. "I'm not, thanks to Morrigan's mother." He said, nodding towards the old woman.

"This doesn't seem real…" Alistair drifted off, looking out at the water. "If it weren't for Morrigan's mother, we would all be dead on top of that tower."

"Do not talk about me as if I am not present, lad." The old woman said, remind Alistair and Ranthelis that she was still there and watching.

"I-I didn't mean…" Alistair stuttered, regaining his composure quickly. "But what do we call you? Y-you never told us your name."

"Names are pretty, but useless." She replied with a sigh. The group raised their eyebrows as they stared at her and she shrugged. "The chasind folk call me Flemeth, I suppose it will do."

At the mention of that name everyone's eyes widened in surprise. "The Flemeth?!" Alistair blurted out. "From the legends?" He slowly stepped back, fear in his eye. "Daveth was right, you're the witch of the wilds aren't you?"

"And what does that mean?" Flemeth asked, seeming a little agitated and amused at the same time. "I know a bit of magic, and it has served all of you well, has it not?"

"I…suppose we should thank you." Lucindae said, standing up to meet the old woman.

"If you know what is good for you, I suppose you should." Flemeth said, almost seeming to hold back a laugh.

"Is there some way we can repay you?" Lucindae continued, looking around nervously.

Flemeth gave out a loud laugh at that, she shook her head when the girl looked to the ground with a deep blush on her cheeks. "All that I wish you to do is what you are meant to do." She said when she finished. "It has always been the grey warden's duty to unite the lands against the blight, or did that change when I wasn't looking?"

"The land is hardly united, thanks to Loghain." Darion replied sourly, glaring into the water as he glared down at his reflection. Ranthelis sighed, knowing that his companion had gone through many betrayals in the last few days. He understood his anger.

"That doesn't make any sense!" Alistair growled. "Why would he do it?"

"Now that is a good question." Flemeth said as if that was the first intelligent thing Alistair had said since he got here. Her face turned to the ground in shame as her smile disappeared. "Men's hearts hold shadows darker than any tainted creature." She looked up, her expression normal again. "Perhaps he believes the blight is an army he can outmaneuver, perhaps he does not see that the evil behind it is the true threat."

"The archdemon." Alistair stated, expressing the thought that everyone in the party had.

"What is the archdemon, exactly?" Lax asked, finally hopping into the conversation and being tired of being left in the dark.

"It is said that long ago, the maker sent the old gods of the ancient tevinter imperium to slumber in prisons deep beneath the surface." Flemeth explained, seeming to have this information completely memorized. "An archdemon is an old god, awakened and tainted by Darkspawn." She sighed as she saw Lax's confused face staring back up at her. "Believe it or not, history says it's a fearsome and immortal thing, and only fools ignore history."

"Then we need to find this archdemon." Ranthelis stated, knowing full well that if they didn't they would die by Darkspawn anyways.

"By ourselves?" Alistair asked in disbelief as he turned to the elf. "No grey warden has ever defeated a blight without the army of a half-dozen nations as his back. Not to mention…" His eyes shifted away from everyone as he shook his head. "I don't know how."

"How to kill the archdemon, or how to raise an army?" Flemeth asked, an amused look coming to her face again. "It seems to me those are two different questions, hmm? Have the wardens no allies these days?"

"I-I…I don't know!" Alistair exclaimed. "Duncan said that the grey wardens of Orlais have been called, and Arl Eamon would never stand for this, surely."

"Perhaps we could go to him then." Ranthelis said, already trying to piece together a plan. They had the treaties and Eamon sounded like a good possibility.

"I suppose…" Alistair sighed, regaining himself. "Arl Eamon wasn't at Ostagar, he still has all his men, and he was Cailan's uncle! I know him. He's a good man, respected in the landsmeet. Of course!" He shouted. "We can go to Redcliffe and appeal to him for help!"

"Keep in mind, Loghain was an honorable man." Darion said, giving them a sick reminder of what happened at Ostagar.

"The arl would never do what Terryhn Loghain did!" Alistair replied, seeming to get very offended. "I know him too well." He slowly drifted off. "I still don't know if…Arl Eamon's help would be enough. He can't defeat the Darkspawn horde all by himself."

"Surely there are other allies we can call upon." Lucindae said, trying to grasp some glimmer of hope from this situation.

"Of course!" Alistair said, snapping his fingers. "The treaties! Grey wardens can demand aid from dwarves, elves, mages, and other places! They're obligated to help us during a blight!"

"I may be old, but dwarves, elves, mages, this Arl Eamon, and who knows what else, this sounds like an army to me." Flemeth said, pointing out the obvious for Lax's sake, who eventually got what they were talking about and a sudden wave of realization came upon him.

"So can we do this?" Alistair asked, looking around at his companions. "Go to Redcliffe and these other places and…build an army?"

"Why not?" Ranthelis asked with a shrug. "That's what grey wardens do."

"So you are set then?" Flemeth asked, looking to the group to see how convicted they were in doing this. Especially Darion, who appeared to want to bring down Loghain no matter what. "Ready to be grey wardens?"

"Yes." Lucindae said with a newfound hope. "Thank you for everything, Flemeth."

"No, no." Flemeth said with a smile. "Thank you. You are the grey wardens here, not I. Now, before you go, there is yet one more thing I can offer you." She looked to the hut where Morrigan was just exiting along with everyone else.

"The stew is bubbling, mother dear." Morrigan said sarcastically. "Shall we have five guests for the eve, or none?"

"The grey wardens are leaving shortly, girl, and you will be joining them." Flemeth stated, not even hesitating when she spoke.

"Such a shame." Morrigan started, apparently not hearing what she said. Suddenly her eyes widened as she turned to her mother. "What?!"

"You heard me girl." Flemeth replied calmly, despite Morrigan's sudden burst. "The last time I checked you still had ears."

The group looked around for a second, unsure of what to say. Then Lucindae stepped forward, "Thank you, but if Morrigan doesn't want to join us…"

"Her magic will be useful." Flemeth said without missing a beat. "And even better, she knows the wilds and how to get past the horde."

"Have I no say in this?" Morrigan asked angrily, her hair almost appeared to be standing on its ends.

"You have been itching to get out of the wilds for years," The old woman stated, still not appearing to get frustrated or angry. "Here is your chance. As for you, wardens," She continued, turning to the others. "Consider this repayment for your lives."

"Very well, we'll take her with us." Darion sighed as he shook his head.

"Not to…look a gift horse in the mouth." Alistair started, eyeing Morrigan up and down for a moment, suspicion in his eye. "But won't this add to our problems? Out of the wilds, she's an apostate."

"If you do not wish the help from us illegal mages, young man, perhaps I should have left you on that tower." Flemeth stated, a twinge of annoyance in her voice.

"Point taken." Alistair grumbled.

"Mother…this is now how I wanted this." Morrigan said, almost pleading now. "I am not even ready-."

"You must be ready." Flemeth said, cutting off her daughter. "Alone, these five must unite Ferelden against the Darkspawn. They need you, Morrigan. Without you, they will surely fail, and all will perish under the blight. Even I."

Lax grumbled something under his breath as Flemeth said this. Ranthelis quickly slapped the back of his head to shut the dwarf up. "I…understand." Morrigan sighed, eventually giving in. Thankfully they had not heard Lax.

"And you, Wardens? Do you understand?" Flemeth asked, turning to the Grey Wardens now. "I give you that which I value above all in this world. I do this because you must succeed."

"She won't come to harm with us." Ranthelis promised, bowing low before anyone else could speak.

"Allow me to get my things, if you please." Morrigan sighed, turning to go back to the hut.

Flemeth shrugged, quickly following after her daughter as she left for the small shack. At this point Lax turned to Ranthelis with a devilish grin on his face. "You have a crush on the witch girl, don't you?"

Ranthelis cleared his throat for a moment, rubbing the back of his head. "Uh…what are you talking about?" He asked, taken off guard for the first time in a while.

"Don't play dumb with me, elf. You like her!" The dwarf continued, teasing Ranthelis for a while.

After a while of teasing Morrigan stepped out, her arms crossed. "I am at your disposal, Grey Wardens." She started. "I suggest a village north of the wilds as our first destination. 'Tis not far and you will find much you need there. Or, if you prefer, I shall simply be your silent guide. The choice is yours."

"No, I prefer you speak your mind." Ranthelis chimed in, much to the stares of Lax and the rest of the group.

"Haha," Flemeth chuckled, shaking her head. "You will regret saying that."

"Dear sweet mother." Morrigan spat. "You are so kind to cast me out like this. How fondly I shall remember this moment."

"Well as I always said," The elderly witch started, seeming to ignore the comment. "If you want something done, do it yourself…or hear about it for a decade or two afterwards."

"I just…" Alistair started, his mind trying to wrap around what was happening. "Do you really want to take her along because her mother says so?"

"Oh get over yourself Alistair." Lax grunted, punching the human's leg and causing him to bed over and grab at it.

"If you are worried that I will summon demons and transform into an abomination, I assure you I will at least wait until you are not looking." Morrigan stated sarcastically.

"I like this girl." Lax said, nudging Ranthelis. "I think you should go for it."

"Shut it." Ranthelis replied, flushing slightly.

"I feel better already." Alistair replied to the witch, rolling his eyes.

"Let's just go." Darion sighed, rubbing his temples. "I've had enough of this banter."

"Farewell mother…" Morrigan said, shooting a glare at Darion for interrupting her. "Do not forget the stew on the fire, I'd hate to return to a burned down hut."

"Bah, tis far more likely that you'll return to see this entire area, including my hut, swallowed by the blight." Flemeth replied harshly.

"I…all I meant was…" Morrigan started…looking genuinely hurt by the comment.

"Yes, I know." Flemeth said, sighing as she shook her head. "Do try to have fun dear."

Darion sighed and nodded to the group. "Let's go…we have a long way to go. Morrigan you know the way better than all of us so you go ahead."

"Very well." Morrigan sighed, indicating for them to follow. "We shall go to a small town of little importance called Lothering. There you can get whatever you need for the journey ahead. Let us go."

"I bet you're looking forward to the adventure now." Lax said, nudging Ranthelis again.

"Moreso than you think." Ranthelis chuckled, out of earshot of Morrigan as she walked in front of them.


	8. Reunified

**A/N: Sorry it's been so long since the last chapter. I've been working on college stuff and my youtube channel. Actually I have a big favor to ask, if you could just come down and check it out I'd really appreciate it ** user/loolfiction?feature=mhee**. Also if you want me to review a story please let me know, I'm more than willing to provide pointers. **

Time had passed under the blaring sun as the party made their way down an old dirt path. They had spent maybe a day or two getting out of the swamp, following a very complicated path that Morrigan had led them down. Alistair watched her wearily from close to the back of the group, obviously still not trusting her. His mail armor clinked with every step and an uncomfortable silence permeated the area. Now that they were given time to think they had realized that they left Darion's dog back at the tower. There was no possible way the creature could have survived the attack and it was obvious that Darion was brooding over this. Well…it was obvious to everyone except Lax, who was content enough so long as he didn't have his wineskin. Though it had been quite a while, too long in fact, since the dwarf had something to drink and he was becoming irritable, exceedingly so. Through some clever manipulation, Ranthelis had managed to keep the dwarf calm though it was becoming harder and harder to appease the all too sober dwarf. The diminutive man was close to actually fuming with irritation.

"Lax, please try relax." Lucindae said calmly, a slight hint of worry in her voice. "This anger isn't going to help anyone."

"Bah humans." The dwarf grunted, waving his hand dismissively at her. "I don't know how you all handle your problems but we dwarves work off aggression by beating something, preferably with a weapon."

"Well the only thing here that you can even attempt that on is the rest of the party. And trust me, you don't want to try that." Darion spat through his teeth. The human was probably the only person in the party that was more irritable than Lax at the moment.

Ranthelis observed the happenings with some interest. He still attempted to categorize the rest of the party. It appeared that Darion would hide his sadness behind anger, quite a common situation for humans and elves alike. His eyes drifted to Lax. As he did this he had taken a piece of his white hair and began chewing at it once again. The dwarf just seemed…well irritated, angry at simply not having alcohol. That was also relatively normal for the lower class of dwarves. Like it or not he had to trust these men. With a sigh he shook his head, he didn't like the current condition of the party. Something would have to happen to change their attitudes, and fast, if they were going to be productive in any sense of the word. His eye drifted to Alistair and Lucindae. The young mage woman had drifted over to the man after she gave up on trying to help Lax. An admirable young woman, shy and soft-spoken at points, but good-natured, he figured she was dependable, albeit he'd need to try to get her some confidence. Next to her was Alistair, hell she was trying to help Alistair. The man was an emotional wreck. He wasn't sobbing or crying but he was hurt, sad. The man didn't try to hide his emotions, an open book. That meant he was honest, dependable, very usable. Ranthelis hated to admit it but he would trust this man with his life, even though he knew him for only a few days. He sighed, his eyes drifting up to the sky for a moment.

"Is there something amiss." A familiar voice commented, teasingly. "Or do you prefer to stare blankly into space to make up for lost sleep?" Morrigan finished.

Ranthelis nearly jumped in surprise, he had forgotten about Morrigan. He didn't even see her come next to him. "I'm just thinking." The elf replied, clearing his throat. He hadn't expected Morrigan to come up to him like this. Not without sufficient time to prepare anything to speak. He barely knew how to respond to her question.

The witch seemed to chuckle, obviously amused. "Well then you are already a step ahead of a certain member of the camp." She commented, nodding towards Alistair.

"True, but his entire world did crash down around his shoulders. You're lucky he's not threatening to end his own life." The dalish shrugged as he kept pace with the woman. Truth be told he was happy for the end of the silence and very thankful that the others couldn't hear them for the moment. Alistair probably would've snapped into anger had he heard what he and Morrigan said. "Look at Darion for a moment. He's gone through essentially the same thing."

"And he is acting just as immaturely. I don't see the point you have made to me." Morrigan replied just as quickly as Ranthelis had spoken. The elf had to admit, she had a point, but it was an emotionally shattering moment. Some immaturity should be expected. Hell some sobbing should be expected. Ranthelis knew this feeling well, when he left the tribe and feared for Tamlen's death, knew of Tamlen's death, he felt that sinking feeling. That one feeling that only people who have lost something very important to them felt. It was emptiness, like something had died. Morrigan seemed to have trouble associating with them. She must've never felt loss before. Either way he wouldn't try to bring it up with her. He didn't know her long enough to make any concrete judgments. Instead he was merely content to walk and create idle conversation with the lady next to him.

The hours passed, they had stopped for food for a while and ate then went back to the road again, this long and seemingly endless road. It seemed just as long as the road to Ostagar. Oddly nostalgic too considering it was a basic dirt path. Talk continued and things didn't change too much from before the break except that Lax was probably even more irritable from not having a wineskin in his hands. Eventually things fell apart. "Damn it all that's all I can stand!" The dwarf roared at the top of his lungs.

"Lax, calm yourself." Darion growled, stopping and turning to face the dwarf. "We still have a distance to go to town. Then you can drink to your hearts content"

"God to hell you damn human. I'm talking about this walking! I thought we were going to be saving people not twiddling our thumbs. I joined the Grey Wardens to make something of myself, to become a hero!"

"Good for you, you'll become a hero by walking down the damned path." Darion hissed, a fire in his eyes.

"We're not heroes!" Lax replied with a shout. That response made Lucindae wince. "We're a group of failures that somehow have to make this entire situation work!"

"Lax, what's gotten into you?" Ranthelis asked. He didn't see this coming…the dwarf was obviously holding something inside. Apparently the dwarves are much better at hiding their true emotions than everyone else. That and the withdrawal. Ranthelis picked up on this immediately, the alcohol withdrawal was causing the dwarf to be much angrier than usual.

"I'll tell you what's gotten into me! Some damned sense!" His finger went to Darion. "You're no leader, you're a spoiled rich kid that now has to figure everything out for himself!" His finger went to Lucindae now. "You're a damn shut in that's too afraid to say anything useful!" Then Alistair was next for his accusations. "You need to grow a set and stop being such a sad and mopey bastard!" Morrigan. "You I can't even trust! I don't know you and you don't even seem to grasp the severity of this entire damned situation! And you, Ranthelis! You seem to always be calculating, working an angle! Who's side are you on?! I swear I've been saving all of your sodding asses since Ostagar! Are we heroes?! No…" The dwarf fell back on his rear, placing his head in his hands. "There's no way we're going to make it at this rate. What are we doing…"

As this rant happened Darion immediately went for his sword, his knuckles whitening on the hilt of his sword and shield. These were the last symbols of his authority. The last symbols of his pride, and the way he was walking towards the dwarf was obviously filled with the intent to kill, to run this little man who called them all out through. "Darion no!" Ranthelis shouted, grabbing the human by the shoulder.

"Don't get in my way Ranthelis!" The noble growled, rolling his shoulder to try and pull out of his grip. Now Alistair joined in, pulling Darion back slightly.

Ranthelis stepped around the human and between him and the dwarf, reaching for his twin blades. "If you insist on this I won't hesitate to stop you." He hissed through his teeth. At this point Lucindae and Alistair were trying to hold the young man back.

"Then you'll be the first to taste my blade, elf!" He shouted, breaking from their grip.

"Only try me shem." Ranthelis muttered, drawing his twin blades. The sheen of their metal reflecting the light.

Suddenly there was a noise…a barking sound. Not quite a wolf. It gave the party pause as they stood there in the uneasy tension. Then the sound came again, definitely a bark. To Darion that bark was all too familiar. "It can't be." He said, his eyes going wide as he turned to face down the path where the bark was heard. Even Lax stood up to see what was going on. Charging down the path was a dog, very large. The creature was built for strength and speed and it was about as tall as Lax. Definitely a Mabari warhound, and one that Darion knew very well.

"Merik!" The young warrior shouted, running to his dog. The creature immediately stopped and spun around, growling madly. Everyone's eyes went up just beyond Merik to see, coming up the path, a group of Darkspawn. All of them glowering and growling, their hideous weaponry raised in the air as they let out their disgusting calls of bloodlust. In front of them stood the leader of their pack, adorned in full plate armor that covered its face. It let out a monstrous howl and pointed its axe at the group of grey wardens.

"How many do you count?" Darion whispered to Ranthelis as the elf walked up to observe what was going on.

"Fifteen or sixteen." Ranthelis whispered back, his blades in his hands. "Let them make the first move, form up and get ready to defend."

Darion nodded, waving his hand for the rest to follow. Wordlessly everyone got into a formation with Darion and Alistair in the front, their shields at the ready for any arrows. Behind them stood Lax, Merik, and Ranthelis. They were poised and ready to attack as soon as their temporary shield wall fell, and behind them stood Morrigan and Lucindae. Both were preparing their spells, this was a good opportunity to evaluate Morrigan's abilities, Ranthelis realized. Though their thoughts were immediately drowned out by the sound of charging Darkspawn.

First to come were the arrows, the slammed into the shields. A metallic ring came across the entire party with each arrow that hit, all of them breaking against the stalwart and strong shields. As soon as the volley was finished Alistair and Darion stepped to the side and Ranthelis and Lax ducked as Morrigan and Lucindae let loose an arcane blast each. Both hit strong and true, Lucindae's struck one of the Darkspawn in the chest, sending it reeling backwards. Morrigan's struck another, a Genlock, square in the head and sent the target flying into the distance. However the creature's body was still there and it fell to its knees, blood pouring from its neck as it hit the ground with a dull thud.

Now it was the melee fighters' turns. Alistair and Darion swung their swords in the opposite direction of each other, one going left and the other going right. Their swords clashed with Darkspawn steel. Darion had to block with his shield as a Genlock swung its axe towards him. Alistair, however, was free to attack and used his shield to smash the Hurlock he was engaged with back a few feet to continue his assault against the creature.

Lax, using his axe to block the swing of a sword, spun around and wound up chopping clean through one of the Darkspawn legs. The creature fell to the ground howling in pain, that was where Lax finished the damned thing off and Merik had already tackled a creature and was working to biting its throat. Ranthelis had already finished off one of the Darkspawn by himself, finding himself against another Hurlock. He was actually doing quite well for himself, having experience as a hunter for the dalish elves. A blast from Morrigan finished the thing off and the elf nodded his thanks. That was when the elf found himself face to face with the Hurlock leader. It swung its mighty axe swiftly to Ranthelis's right side. The elf ducked the attack, the weapon grazing over one of his hairs. The elf took a swing at its hand, causing it to step back but drop its weapon in its haste. Frustrated the creature drew its sword and charged Ranthelis. The two engaged in a sword fight, blade crossing blade as their swords caused sparks to fly.

As those two were fighting, Darion had finished off a Hurlock with a quick swing of his sword, slitting its throat. He gave the Genlock he was fighting a swift kick after he blocked one of its strikes and sent it tumbling back where he finished the creature off with a downward stab. Lucindae, almost panicking in the battle, loosed an arcane bolt that tore one of the Darkspawn arms clean off. That was where Alistair spun around and decapitated it with one swing of his sword, his shield fending off the Hurlock he was fighting. Lax was also having a decent time against a Genlock, the two creatures locked in a power struggle as their weapons crossed. Lax won, with a great deal of ease, and nearly chopped the creature in half with a downward stroke of his axe. Merik had also finished off another assailant, using his teeth to viciously rip out the monster's throat.

As the battle continued, and it was obvious that the grey wardens were winning, Ranthelis and the Hurlock alpha continued to battle. With every stroke Ranthelis would match, with every block would come another attack. Counter after counter the two went on for a few moments, neither side giving an inch. That was until Ranthelis threw a kick at the Darkspawn's knee, causing a sickening snap to be heard. The monstrous thing howled in a way that only injured animals can, until Ranthelis ran it through with his twin blades. A moment of struggle happened, and then the creature fell dead. The elf turned to face the carnage that his companions had wrought, and carnage it was. Corpses and blood lined the streets as blood was spattered all over those who had gone up front and killed the Darkspawn with their weapons. Surprisingly enough, the mages had no blood whatsoever.

"By the maker." Lucindae exclaimed, looking over the death and destruction. "Look at them all."

"Nothing we couldn't handle." Alistair said proudly, placing his hands on his hips.

"We can talk about our exploits later." Darion said, wiping the blood off his face. He bent down and began scratching his dog's sides. "Right now we need to get out of here and to safety."

"Seconded." Lax replied, standing next to the human.

Ranthelis almost chuckled, the two had actually come to a mutual friendship on the battlefield in those few moments. They had forgotten the words exchanged just a few moments before the battle happened. That was certainly a relief. "Then let us go." Morrigan said huffily. "We have a good distance to cover until we reach our destination, so we should move quickly." With that the witch began walking ahead now, Ranthelis almost detected a sigh of relief from her as she walked. She was probably just as thankful as he that there was no bloodshed on their side this day. Now that all tension had been lifted for a moment, it was time to go to Lothering.


End file.
